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The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) win the 2024 industry-team project award at the recent Sir Arthur Clarke Awards.

Credit: miniseries, E+ via Getty Images

STFC, part of UK Research and Innovation, has scooped the prestigious 2024 Sir Arthur Clarke Awards, winning the industry-team project category for outstanding support for space tech start-ups.

This year’s award celebrates the achievements of the STFC Innovation Clusters team and the European Space Agency Business Incubation Centre UK (ESA BIC UK) team.

Empowering space start-ups

Both teams are dedicated to supporting early-stage UK space start-ups, by providing them with technical expertise, business support and vital funding.

By breaking down traditional barriers to entry into the space sector, together the teams are enabling entrepreneurs to transform ambitious ideas into viable businesses.

Ideas include using satellite imagery for ecosystem restoration or developing reusable rockets.

Credit: STFC

Driving impact

ESA BIC UK is part of the world’s largest business incubation programme for space tech start-ups.

To date, STFC’s ESA BIC UK team has successfully supported over 130 companies, generating close to £300 million gross value added and achieving a 95% business survival rate.

This support has been received by companies across multiple sites, including:

• UK Astronomy Technology Centre
• Daresbury Laboratory
• Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL)

Pivotal role

STFC’s Innovation Cluster team plays a pivotal role in managing and leading highly collaborative space clusters, including the:

• Harwell Space Cluster, home to sovereign-scale space testing infrastructure, including RAL Space and ESA’s European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications facility alongside over 100 space businesses
• North West Space Cluster, representative of over 170 space active organisations, including the headquarters for the Square Kilometre Array and the European Tribology Laboratory

This is linked to STFC’s cluster strategy and its work with key stakeholders like the Satellite Applications Catapult and UK Space Agency in championing a connected UK space ecosystem.

Collaboration and job creation

By utilising their diverse network within the sector, together the teams are ensuring tailored support for space companies from start up to scale up.

Underpinned by collaboration, the teams foster strong relationships, providing guidance and support that enables companies from incubation stage to move into the space sector more agilely and support long term success.

To date, this approach has:

• supported over 2,000 highly skilled jobs within the UK
• expanded the nation’s space capabilities
• supported over 100 collaborations through flagship programmes such as the cross cluster proof of concept funding opportunity

Transforming innovation

Paul Vernon, Executive Director of Business and Innovation at STFC, recently said:

It is a remarkable achievement for STFC to be recognised at the Sir Arthur Clarke Awards.

The award not only celebrates our passion for supporting space start-ups but also the commitment STFC has to empowering pioneering businesses in the UK space sector.

Transforming innovative ideas into commercially successful ventures is a complex journey, but the achievements of our start-ups highlight the impact of the support and resources we provide.

I congratulate all the teams involved for their remarkable progress and look forward to their continued success.

Find out more about the Sir Arthur Clarke Awards.

Further information

ESA BIC UK is managed by STFC in collaboration with:

• ESA
• UK Space Agency
• University of Leicester

Find out more about the ESA BIC UK programme.