BICESTER MOTION CELEBRATES ‘POSITIVE DETERMINATION’ FOR ITS EXPERIENCE QUARTER

Bicester Motion, which is based at the former RAF Bicester and plans to be the first UK’s first automotive resort, has secured a positive determination for its Experience Quarter from Cherwell Planning Committee.

The Experience Quarter is a strategic development site for heritage tourism uses, leisure, recreation, employment and community, having been subjected to several years of pre-planning application.

Bicester Motion plans to develop four quarters which it identifies as heritage, wilderness, innovation and experience.

Oxford-based Ridge & Partners provided architecture with multidiscipline engineering and sustainability consultancy.

The new hub will provide an active airfield, driving training and handling tracks as well as walking and cycling trails.

The planning determination was applauded by Visit England.

Andrew Stokes, Visit England Director, said: “A major investment in a development such as this would be a vote of confidence for the UK tourism sector. A world-class development can put a destination on the global map. We therefore support both development and planned growth that could aid an industry that accounts for 10 per cent of all jobs.”

Nigel Tipple, Chief Executive for OXLEP (Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership) added: “This new development will open up countless opportunities for Bicester and Oxfordshire and create significant benefits locally and nationally – including economic growth, training and job opportunities and new cultural leisure activities for residents and visitors alike.”

Daniel Geoghegan, CEO, Bicester Motion said: “The Experience Quarter will act as a location for businesses to connect with allages, making a range of experiences and motion-based opportunities accessible to all. As we continue with the delivery of our masterplan and the wider Bicester Motion site, the Experience Quarter provides the missing link between our historic site and the future, not only of benefit to Bicester and the local area but also of benefit to the UK as a whole.”

Oxford attracted more venture capital funding in 2021

Oxford attracted more venture capital funding in 2021 than all other regions outside London combined, according to figures from the Digital Economy Council.

Using data from database management company Dealroom, and job search engine Adzuna, the government’s Digital Economy Council Levelling Up Power Tech League revealed that between January and November 2021 Oxford-based firms attracted £1.3 billion in funding.

By comparison, all the other regions analysed – including Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Cambridge, Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast –raised a combined total of £1.275 billion.

Oxford’s figure was driven by a number of high-profile, high-value deals, including the £396 million Series D raise by newlycrowned unicorn, AI drug discovery Exscientia, and £127 million raised by biotech company Vaccitech which helped create the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.

Oxford was also home to the joint highest number of regional venture capital rounds, with a total of 49 rounds taking place in Oxford in 2021, putting the region on par with Cambridge.

All these achievements combined to see Oxford placed third in the overall ranking of UK’s leading regional tech hubs, behind Cambridge and Manchester.

Oxford lost to these cities because there were fewer available tech jobs in the city at the time of research (1,408), and the advertised average salary was on the lower end of the scale at £51,315.

This regional growth took place against the backdrop of an incredible year for the UK tech industry.

Tech investment grew 2.3 times in 2021, the highest growth since 2014 when it grew from £1.5 billion to £3.5 billion.

The £26 million raised by UK start-ups and scale-ups was nearly double that raised in Germany (£13.5 million) and more than three times that raised by French companies.

UK tech investment made up 35 per cent of the total £76 billion that flowed into the European tech ecosystem this year.

Necessity is the mother of invention and the increasingly urgent need to discover new ways to harness technology to benefit mankind, means new ideas and ambition are needed now more than at any time in a generation.

Inventions help people around the world live longer, healthier and more productive lives and provide new ways to build, move, communicate, heal, learn and play. New tools, software, devices, processes and medicines, are providing significant benefits to society.

“Real innovation is not necessarily all about large scale changes, but often about making smaller incremental changes that make things radically better.”

“Innovation is something that makes a positive impact on humans or the planet – it’s where you think about your product and how it fits in with the wider picture.”

Recently I have supported an Oxford based spin-out company developing fingerprint technology, in the use of smart cards, to create a more secure system for the user - a small change that will make a big difference with big benefits.

Innovation is at the heart of what drives business growth. Technology innovation spans across many sectors including manufacturing, engineering, autonomous technologies, mobile, digital and

Malin Svanberg

Corporate Tech

software innovations, VR, robotics, space technologies, health-tech, bio-tech, greentech, agri-tech and consumer products to name a few.

Innovation is vital, because it gives companies an edge in penetrating markets faster, which can lead to bigger opportunities. This is what excites me about innovation.

“I find entrepreneurial spirit, and a willingness to try something new and push the boundaries of what’s possible, hugely exiting to be a part of.”

Being based in Oxford, I am surrounded by innovative companies. Take OxWash for example, who have taken a simple concept of laundry and cleaned it up. They made the laundry process different through innovation. They are delivering real change in the way we do laundry and have attracted investment from Holly and Sam Branson, who backed them as the UK’s first sustainable on-demand laundry service, aiming to achieve net zero carbon emissions for the whole process, from collection, through washing, back to delivery. They are using less water which is good for the planet and achieving business growth in the process.

Oxfordshire has been at the centre of innovation for centuries. The OxfordCambridge Arc is renowned for worldleading research and development, and its innovative science and technology sector. With thousands of great businesses headquartered here, the county is one of the strongest engines for growth in the UK.

Being in a position where I can help companies with their innovation journey is extremely rewarding. We are currently helping one of Oxford’s fastest growing life sciences companies to develop their engineering capabilities, and clinical diagnostics for rapid expansion.

Also recently I have helped our client, Centrica plc, on its investment in HiiROC Ltd, a company that is helping to combat climate change by developing “green” hydrogen.

I love the ambition of the people behind the businesses here in Oxfordshire. It challenges me personally to look at how we deliver our services and to be adaptable to the constantly changing environments businesses operate in. With our clients we push each other to be better, do better, and to think differently.

How we operate…

My main role at Freeths is to help clients with their challenges. We do that by learning about their industry, which means we can help them both spot opportunity and also avoid problems before they even arise.

“We are business people first and lawyers second which is why at Freeths we are committed to supporting companies with innovation at the core of their business.”

It is exciting to talk to new businesses about what they are developing. We want to meet great businesses and support your innovation, so call us to discuss to your ambitions or challenges and we can help you early on.

The importance of trust…

Nearly all innovations need to secure the trust of the public, to gain the widespread adoption needed to be commercially successful and justify the millions of pounds invested in their development by the private and public sector.

Research from LawtechUK, the governmentbacked initiative within Tech Nation, revealed last year that legal tech firms are needed to support small to medium businesses (SMEs)

Malin Svanberg Larsson

with their legal issues around innovating. It found that many SMEs do not know when or whether to involve lawyers – and some do not recognise when they have a legal problem.

The right innovative legal techniques can help you save precious time and money, and give you a competitive lead in expanding your business.

“My objective is to make the whole process of legal consulting as easy as possible for clients who need our expertise.”

My approach to clients on their innovation journey is to consider the whole picture, and apply a range of service delivery methods to help them innovate and grow.

Malin Svanberg Larsson, is Corporate Partner who specialises in Technology in the Oxford o ce of Freeths, a national, top 50, full service law firm. Malin specialises in advising businesses on a wide range of corporate matters from starting up, early-stage investment (including S/EIS funding) right through to exit (whether that is to private equity, or national or international acquirers). She also advises on joint ventures, strategic acquisitions and corporate governance. She advises for clients across a range of sectors including technology, manufacturing and consultancy. Malin is well regarded for her highly attentive and solutions-orientated approach and is known for bringing sound commercial understanding of achieving business goals and objectives.

Malin Svanberg Larsson - Corporate Partner

0792 160 3252 | malin.svanberglarsson@freeths.co.uk

Freeths is committed to cultivating innovation in the region and are supporting a number of innovation initiatives.

The Innovation Challenge

Powered by TBAT, The Innovation Challenge brings together key partners to support SMEs to innovate. The Innovation Challenge will culminate in June with the opportunity to win an exciting prize package of £5,000 and a tailored support packages from a selection of the partners.

Back to the future

Freeths, The Oxford Trust, Oxford Innovation and Barclays Eagle Labs are launching an expert-led event series for science & tech start-ups and spin-outs based in innovation centres in Oxfordshire. The series is designed to help these businesses scale and grow and will go live in April.

Entrepreneurs Growth Hub

Freeths and James Cowper Kreston have launched an Entrepreneurs Growth Hub. It caters for regional entrepreneurs who are looking to de-risk their business growth.

It was back in 1965 that Malcolm first started work as an articled clerk to Jack Whitley who was a main partner along with John Stimpson at the office in Lincoln Chambers, in the Market Place, Banbury.

The clients at the time were heavily farming based as Banbury was a market town with weekly cattle sales at the stock market.

Malcolm said: “There are a few clients I worked with back in 1965 that are still with us”.

Malcolm qualified as an accountant in 1971, became a partner in 1973 and senior partner in 2003 and there has been considerable growth during that period. He saw the firm celebrate its 90th year last year.

He added: “We’ve gone from a partnership to an LLP then to a limited company and we’ve merged with businesses in High Wycombe, Bicester and Witney.”

Whitley Stimpson’s client base now stretches from the Midlands to London, employing more than 80 staff and it has been ranked as one of the country’s top accountancy firms for the eighth year running by the prestigious Accountancy Age 50+50 survey.