We have an international reputation in health innovation and Fintech, a formidable knowledge engine with excellent SME networks and international research credentials, strong anchor institutions and business networks, and a skilled labour market which is bolstered by our graduate population.

The launch of Nexus at the University of Leeds in 2019 is bringing together the brightest minds from business, technology and academia, pushing boundaries to deliver societal change. Its community has more than doubled to 110 businesses in the last year and is already looking at expanding further.

And the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust’s plans to deliver two new hospitals at Leeds General Infirmary (LGI) is one of the most important developments for a generation – bringing positive improvements in healthcare in the region as well as being the catalyst for a new world class hub for research, healthtech, and innovation. We have already started growing a community of high-tech start-ups through our on-site Innovation Pop Up. Here, we bring together entrepreneurs and clinicians to transform the latest advances in science and technology into real world solutions. It has only been a year since our Pop Up launched and it is already working with businesses in the US, Norway and Israel.

We are providing first-class facilities and bringing together the brightest minds in research, engineering, technology and creativity.

This is creating real momentum. There are now 49,000 people working specifically in tech start-ups and scaleups across Leeds, and in this current year these businesses have raised around £300 million, an increase of 88 per cent on 2021’s figures. Nearly a quarter of the UK’s digital health jobs are based in the Leeds City Region.

These are exciting times but also challenging, and collectively the Leeds Innovation Partnership has a responsibility to create and sustain an environment where innovation can continue to grow, harnessing our previous successes to bring even more minds to our city and foster even stronger bonds between them. And we want to do this inclusively by supporting the most diverse set of entrepreneurs to fulfil their potential, with funding schemes such as the BUILD programme.

To support the growth and coherence of our innovation places, Leeds City Council has launched a consultation for the ‘Innovation Arc’ stretching to the west and through the spine of our education institutions in the city centre, covering some space of 175 football pitches. The Innovation Arc is already home to a concentration of the city’s anchor institutions, innovators and leading businesses, and we can deliver so much more, starting with proposals to deliver one million square feet of new innovation space to offer an inviting home for those who want to start up here, and want to grow and expand.

The ambitions within the consultation go much further than providing a physical space; it is also about fostering an environment where entrepreneurs and innovators can be confident they are surrounded by the knowledge and support to make an impact. The proposals to bring the British Library North to Temple Works, and building networks such as the Business and IP Centre, are just some of the ways we can do this.

The Leeds Innovation Partnership shares in the Council’s ambitions for the Innovation Arc, which represent one of the largest regeneration schemes in the north of the country and will maintain our strong momentum and growth across the city.

These ambitions will reinforce our position as a nationally important and internationally recognised economic and knowledge engine, where cutting edge academic research and entrepreneurial businesses come together.

These ambitions also recognise the importance of stitching together the Innovation Arc with is neighbouring communities, softening the city’s hard landscape to break down perceived or real physical barriers which can discourage people from living or working in this space.

The Innovation Arc SPD can help accelerate growth and productivity in our city, create good jobs and drive progress towards a healthier, greener and more inclusive future.

In delivering a better built environment we can help create a place where we can support everyone to be their best, where employers want to locate and invest, and a place that directly benefits the residents of Leeds, and the 3 million people living within the wider City Region.

Delivering such bold ambitions requires the backing and support of as many of us as possible. We are proud to support these ambitions and we encourage everyone to have their say and help shape our city.

Dame Linda Pollard DBE Hon LLD, Chair of Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT) and Chair of the Leeds Innovation Partnership

Leeds Innovation Arc can accelerate city's exciting growth - Dame Linda Pollard