In the second edition of Cpl Life Sciences Forward Focus, we provide a broad overview of the life sciences labour market across different regions of the UK, with focused snapshots of key locations and sector insights.
Background
The publication draws on a variety of sources, including the Office of Life Sciences, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), and Vacancy Soft. Through Cpl Life Sciences exclusive partnership with Vacancy Soft, the UK’s leading provider of labour market data and analytics, this edition incorporates critical data that highlights job vacancy trends within the life sciences industry.
Intended for informational purposes only, the publication serves to offer general insights into the dynamics of the UK life science labour market. By drawing on diverse data sources the aim is to provide a well-rounded view of the current state and future prospects of life sciences staffing across the UK.
UK Life Sciences Overview
The UK is a global leader in life sciences, employing more than 304,200 people in 6,850 life sciences companies, across nearly 8,000 sites. Figures available at the time of publication show these businesses generate a turnover of £108.1 billion in the UK.
There are four core sectors operating within life sciences in the UK and recognised by the UK government, they are:
Biopharmaceutical core
Biopharmaceutical service and supply
Medical technology core
Medical technology service and supply
In recent years, the medical technology (Medtech) sector in the UK has grown. It is now responsible for £34bn turnover and employs 154,000 people across over 4,000 businesses.
Across the whole of the UK, the South East region of England, which includes the ‘golden triangle’, dominates with the highest share of both life sciences industry employment and turnover, accounting for 24% of total employment and 30% of total turnover in 2021.
London and the Greater South East
The London and Greater South East (GSE) region is known globally for its innovation and contribution to the life sciences industry.
The region is home to four of the world’s top 10 universities, five of the seven UK academic health science centres, and several leading medical research institutes including the Wellcome Trust, the Medical Research Council, and Cancer Research UK. There are over 193,000 life science employees in the region and 19 of the top 20 global pharmaceutical companies have a location in the GSE.
Golden Triangle
London is a particular hot spot for life sciences talent, with 11% of UK life sciences employment based in the city. London forms part of the ‘Golden Triangle’, a world-leading cluster for life sciences covering Cambridge, Oxford and London. It is known for being a hub for candidates with a background in the life sciences sector.
The region is currently benefiting from a wave of new investment, such as the Institute of Cancer Research creating the world’s second largest cancer research campus in south London and AstraZeneca’s Global R&D Centre—bringing together 2,000 employees in Cambridge.
The latest annual labour market figures for the region show a marked decrease in job vacancy numbers in 2023 compared to an incredibly robust 2022. In Cambridge, total vacancies fell by 62%, by 35% in London and by 51% in Oxford, compared to 2022 vacancy data. Vacancies were down significantly in 2023 across all areas of life sciences—within pharmaceutical companies, volumes fell 49.4%. However, latest data shows pharma makes up 57% of all vacancies across the region.
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A full list of sources is available at the back of the publication.