UK Space Agency touches down at new Harwell Campus HQ

By Daniel Face

26 March 2024

Share

The Business Magazine article image for: UK Space Agency touches down at new Harwell Campus HQ

The Quad Two building at Harwell Campus

The UK Space Agency has relocated its headquarters to Harwell Science and Innovation Campus near Didcot, bringing it closer to major players in the sector.

This June, the team will move into a 10,500 sq ft space in the Quad Two building.

They’ll join commercial space organisations like Astroscale and Oxford Space Systems, as well as public sector stakeholders including the European Space Agency, RAL Space (run by the Science and Technology Facilities Council, STFC) and the Satellite Applications Catapult.

Stuart Grant, chief executive of Harwell Campus, said: “We’re delighted to welcome the UK Space Agency to the thriving space cluster of more than 100 organisations at Harwell Campus.

Read the March 2024 issue of The Business Magazine, including our feature on skills

“Their presence cements the campus’ position as a leading international space hub and will help leverage synergies, drive innovation and foster partnerships with key industry players.”

Valued at over £17.5 billion a year and employing more than 45,000 people, the UK space sector is growing faster than the rest of the nation’s economy.

As for Harwell Campus, it’s home to one of Europe’s largest space clusters and offers an STFC-funded scaleup and accelerator programme, ESA-BIC UK.

The STFC has supported more than 100 space-related organisations through the programme, maintaining an 87 per cent survival rate.

Dr Paul Bate, CEO of the UK Space Agency, added: “This is a transformational moment for both the UK Space Agency and UK space innovation.

“The UK space sector is growing rapidly, and moving closer to the industry we serve will boost growth, improve relationships with regional organisations and support a strong, diverse and resilient sector.

“We’ve seen a significant rise of space organisations across the UK. It’s crucial that we nurture skills and expertise, both established and emerging, to ensure we continue this journey.”

By Daniel Face

Born and raised in Berkshire, Dan fell into journalism after completing his bachelor’s degree in English at UCL.

Writing for The Business Magazine and local Biz News sites has given him the opportunity to chat with all manner of small business owners and share their success stories with a wider audience.

Outside of work, Dan enjoys live music, board games and quiz shows, and is making a slow but persistent effort to learn Spanish.