Key Sectors
Space
The EM3 area, which is part of the wider Space South Central cluster region, is the largest regional space cluster in the UK with over 130 organisations in it, combining for a turnover more than £3bn per annum and employing over 5500 workers.
The regional space sector – a fusion of businesses (large and small, new, and established) and world-class universities – combine to demonstrate the global impact, dynamism and breadth of space capabilities that is unrivalled anywhere else in the UK. Some of these businesses include Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd and Earth-i, based at Surrey Research Park in Guildford and In-Space Missions, headquartered at Omega Park, in Alton.
Enterprise M3 has been an active supporter of Space South Central since its formation in April 2023 and prior to that as the South Coast Centre of Excellence in Satellite Applications (SCCoE). EM3 continues to play a supportive role in the sector’s growth; with key priorities centred on identifying funding and investment opportunities, supporting academic/industry partnerships, promoting sector successes, and connecting organisations locally, nationally, and internationally.
Creative Industries
Enterprise M3 has one of the largest creative & cultural presences outside of London in terms of both business and employee numbers, with business and employee concentrations above the national average, notably in the upper M3/M25 corridor. At its heart, we have the ‘Hollywood of Videogames’, a cluster of globally-renowned creative content excellence in Guildford. With more than 10% of the UK's game development workforce located in the Guildford & Aldershot travel to work area alone and an ongoing history of strong inward investment, the region’s position as an example of creative prestige is secure.
Overall, this sector is worth an estimated £4.5bn, 8% of the total EM3 economy. This past year has seen growing demand for creative & cultural talent, with Guildford, Rushmoor, and Basingstoke and Deane seeing the highest demand for jobs. Creative IT software & computer services are the largest sub-sector, but creative media production has experienced robust business growth over the past decade.
Life sciences
Life sciences in the Enterprise M3 region have a significant presence across Hampshire and Surrey and a 5% national share overall. This sector generates an estimated annual GDP approaching £2bn, with over a quarter of life science businesses having an annual turnover exceeding £5 million. Other key facts include:
- Guildford has the most life sciences sites, but large numbers exist in Test Valley and Basingstoke too.
- Data suggests potential clusters of life sciences activity across key locations in Hampshire and Surrey, including north Hampshire (Andover, Basingstoke), and along the M25 (Staines, Chertsey, Reigate-Redhill), in Guilford and Farnham.
- Life sciences sites across Hampshire and Surrey tend to be larger, with approximately 5% of sites employing 250+ workers compared to the industry average of 0.3%.
- The life sciences sector comes with a high reputation. For example, for R&D activities, manufacturing across medical technology and bio pharmaceutical and so forth. Thereby strengthening the business case for further growth, innovation, and investment.
Jet Zero
Jet Zero is a strategic regional response, led by EM3, that is set against the Government’s national strategy to achieve net zero in aviation by 2050.
We work with industry and other partners to facilitate greener aviation across key areas, from sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), advanced materials and airport operations (including hydrogen fuel storage) to developing / deploying new technologies and systems, and next generation aircraft that offer the potential for no tailpipe CO2 emissions.
We’ve identified an emerging cluster in excess of 150 businesses linked to Jet Zero; with firms such as Boeing, BAE Systems, Thales, Gulfstream Aerospace, QinetiQ, and Farnborough Airport, to key local businesses, intermediaries, and specialist providers from Farnborough Aerospace Consortium, Farnborough College of Technology, TISCIS, and the University of Surrey. Priorities to grow this cluster are several, including improving supply / value chain activities, global positioning to aid business expansion and inward investment, and strategic alignment to the wider innovation ecosystem that the Enterprise M3 region is renowned for.
Animal Health
Enterprise M3 region has a thriving animal health sector that is globally competitive, vibrant, and viable, spanning surveillance, diagnostics, R&D, data, and biotechnology. This rich ecosystem has catalysed the formation of the new Animal Health Innovation Network, which is at the forefront of revolutionary technologies that are transforming the animal health sector globally.
Drawing on the best of research, workforce development, innovation and digital infrastructure, companies will be able to develop, validate, and commercialise new products and services as well as enable better opportunities for value creation through collaborations, data, and knowledge exchange. Core strengths of the region’s animal health sector include:
- Innovative, multi-disciplinary leadership in animal health
- A dynamic, cross-sectoral supply chain
- Pioneering cluster activity
- A highly skilled talent pipeline
- A growing animal health ecosystem
