South East: Oxford Science Park toasts 25 years of discovery and plans for development

The Oxford Science Park’s 25th anniversary, and Magdalen’s full acquisition of it and plans for its future development, were recently celebrated at a glittering event hosted by the College. 

Lord Drayson, entrepreneur in residence at Magdalen College, paid tribute to Oxford’s early pioneers who had the foresight to create the Park in 1991, and toasted success for the next generation of entrepreneurs.

He said: “When we came to the Park in 1993 to set up PowderJect, Magdalen College and its dons supported us by providing flexibility with our rent, office space and room to grow, in return for a small equity share.  This paid off; we became a £550 million company, the world’s sixth-largest vaccine company with a 40-times return to investors, including Magdalen and its dons, and with £21m to the University to help build the new engineering building on South Parks Road.

“This entreprenurial culture and expertise has been recycled into other many companies which have come out of PowderJect, many of them growing up on the Park: Circassia, MedPhram, PsiOxus, Powdermed, Oxford Immunotech – surpassing the wealth creation of PowderJect many fold.

“We have seen a transformation in Oxford’s financing with the creation of Oxford Sciences Innovation – championed by another Magdalen College person, Peter Davies of Lansdowne, with a breakthrough £320m fund, which alongside the Woodford Patient Capital Fund based in Cowley, means that Oxford entrepreneurs now have access to the capital to realise the full potential of their ideas. This reflects a sea change in the attitude of the University of Oxford which now has innovation and wealth creation firmly at the heart of its agenda.”

The event also celebrated Magdalen’s recent acquisition of the outstanding 50% stake in the Park’s joint venture for £18.1m. This allows it to take 100% control of its management and future development, with a strategic commitment to develop an additional 300,000 sq ft of new office-and- laboratory space on the remaining 12.8 acres of land.

Rory Maw, bursar of Magdalen College, said: “We are demonstrating our commitment to the Park’s future development, helping Oxford’s growing community of science, technology and business-services companies to establish themselves, innovate, and thrive.”

The Park is one of the most influential environments in the UK. Set in 75 acres of beautifully-landscaped grounds with an atmosphere of discovery, innovation and entrepreneurship, it is a community with over 2,400 people in more than 60 companies, ranging from start-ups based in the Magdalen Centre innovation hub to SMEs to major international companies.