The location advantage: How clusters accelerate innovation and success

It is not technology alone that drives innovation but the environments and ecosystems in which people and organisations operate.

The UK has a unique opportunity to become a global leader in innovation. With world-class universities, a strong R&D base, and strengths spanning life sciences, digital technology, advanced manufacturing and the creative industries, the foundations for growth are in place. But ideas do not flourish in isolation. They need the right environment.

As the Brookings Institution notes, innovation districts are “geographic areas where leading-edge anchor institutions and companies cluster and connect with start-ups, business incubators, and accelerators” to accelerate knowledge transfer and economic growth (1). They show why place matters: innovation thrives when businesses, universities and investors are physically and culturally connected.

The UK government’s Modern Industrial Strategy (2) recognises this, emphasising that place-based investment in high-potential clusters and city regions is central to national competitiveness. For senior business leaders, this has a direct implication. Choosing the right location is not a property decision but a strategic growth decision.

Why clustering and proximity drive collaboration and breakthroughs

Despite digital connectivity, physical proximity remains irreplaceable. An MIT study found that researchers located in the same workspace were more than three times as likely to collaborate on papers compared to those 400 meters apart; collaboration rates dropped by half at 800 meters distance (3). Through proximity these innovation ecosystems (4) support the commercialisation of ideas and scaling (5).

For companies, there are clear benefits. Being part of an innovation cluster embeds organisations in a network where knowledge is shared, and investment opportunities and partnerships are created. This is why scaleup ecosystems and business clusters consistently outperform isolated firms.

The anatomy of an innovation cluster

Whether described as an innovation district, corridor, campus, or cluster, the most successful ecosystems share three core characteristics:

• Infrastructure: flexible offices, specialist lab space, advanced manufacturing space, collaboration zones and meeting rooms, advanced digital connectivity and flexible lease terms that give organisations the right physical foundations to operate and grow.

• Networks: embedded connections to universities, hospitals, investors, supply chains and corporates that allow knowledge, capital and talent to flow easily.

• Shared amenities and public realm: cafés, open spaces, housing, cultural venues and curated events that encourage interaction, collaboration and a sense of community.

When these elements combine, they create an “ecosystem advantage” and the right conditions for place-based innovation, where proximity, infrastructure and networks actively accelerate growth. For senior decision makers of high-growth companies, these dynamics translate into tangible business outcomes: faster recruitment, easier access to capital, stronger partnerships and environments that help attract and retain top talent.

Manchester’s Oxford Road Corridor

The Oxford Road Corridor is one of the UK’s most significant innovation districts, generating nearly 20 per cent of Manchester’s economic output and supporting more than 79,000 jobs. Concentrating two leading universities, NHS Trusts and a critical mass of life sciences and tech firms, it provides the density, proximity and accessibility that Brookings identifies as essential.

Bruntwood SciTech plays a central role in this cluster:

• Manchester Science Park provides specialist labs, flexible space and accelerator programmes, supporting companies from start-up to scale-up.

• Circle Square combines workspace, student living and cultural amenities in a mixed-use environment designed to attract and retain the next generation of talent.

• Citylabs, located alongside Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, has become a world-class campus for diagnostics, medtech and precision medicine. With Citylabs 4 now completed, the campus provides over 400,000 sq ft of state-of-the-art space for businesses innovating in healthcare.

• Thread Works, recently opened in central Manchester at the gateway to this knowledge quarter, offers high-quality, flexible workspace for scaling businesses.

According to Beauhurst data, in the Oxford Road Corridor, 16% of resident businesses are recognised by Beauhurst as scale-ups, compared to the UK average of 1%, demonstrating the density of high-growth activity in this cluster.

Case study: Lucid at Manchester Science Park

Lucid, based at Manchester Science Park, shows how location can directly influence business performance. The company develops advanced medical devices in partnership with Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, giving it access to clinical expertise and a strong research base. Being embedded in a cluster with specialist facilities and like-minded peers has enabled Lucid to shorten development cycles, secure funding, and accelerate products into the healthcare system. While the NHS adoption journey remains complex nationally, co-location with clinicians has given Lucid faster feedback, greater credibility, and stronger pathways into testing and trials.

Read more on Lucid’s business success

Birmingham Knowledge Quarter

Birmingham is rapidly building its own nationally significant innovation cluster. Anchored by universities and hospitals, the Birmingham Knowledge Quarter is attracting high-growth digital and tech firms. Bruntwood SciTech’s Innovation Birmingham Campus has been central to this journey, providing space, accelerators and events that connect start-ups and scale-ups with funders and skills.

The recently completed Enterprise Wharf is the city’s first smart-enabled office building, designed to provide flexible, energy-efficient workspace for businesses at the cutting edge of technology and professional services.

Why location is a strategic choice for business leaders

For senior decision makers, choosing the right location has implications that go far beyond cost or square footage. Clusters and districts create value in three critical ways:

1. Talent attraction and retention: Clusters anchored by universities and enriched with cultural and lifestyle amenities make it easier for businesses to access emerging talent pipelines and attract skilled professionals, even as the UK faces a wider STEM skills gap. Circle Square in Manchester, Enterprise Wharf in Birmingham and Thread Works in central Manchester all provide environments that make it easier to attract and retain the best people.

2. Investor access and credibility: Investors are drawn to clusters because they reduce risk. Businesses embedded in recognised ecosystems signal credibility and are seen as more likely to scale. While securing funding remains a challenge across the UK, being based in a strong cluster increases visibility and confidence with investors.

3. Acceleration of innovation: Proximity to peers, suppliers and institutions increases the speed of collaboration. At Manchester Science Park, Lucid benefits from NHS partnerships. At Alderley Park, scale-ups can co-locate with global pharma companies. At Innovation Birmingham, start-ups are plugged into accelerators and networks from day one. This is how university spinouts and research-led businesses are able to translate ideas into commercial products more quickly.

Beauhurst data shows that 52% of all life sciences businesses based in Bruntwood SciTech campuses have raised external funding, totalling £531m, compared with 10% across the wider UK life science sector. Whilst our digital and tech customers have collectively raised £955m over the last 14 years.

“When we speak to our customers, what they tell us is that being based in one of our campuses gives them more than space. It gives them visibility with investors, daily proximity to potential partners, and access to the kind of talent that is much harder to find in isolation. That combination is why clusters matter, they accelerate everything from recruitment to research translation.”

Josh Whiteley, Commercial Director, Bruntwood SciTech

The location advantage

Innovation is social. It depends on conversations, networks and trust — all of which are strengthened by physical proximity. For corporates, this makes location one of the most strategic decisions they can make.

We are uniquely positioned across the UK’s leading innovation districts and clusters. In Manchester, we play a central role in the Oxford Road Corridor through Manchester Science Park, Circle Square, Citylabs and Thread Works. In Birmingham, Enterprise Wharf, Birmingham Health Innovation Campus (BHIC) and Innovation Birmingham anchor the Knowledge Quarter. Beyond these cities, our campuses and hubs in Cambridge, Leeds, Liverpool and Cheshire’s Alderley Park provide equally powerful ecosystems for science and technology businesses. 

Our role is not just about individual sites but about joining them up. By encouraging collaboration across clusters, we help businesses, universities and investors connect between regions, creating a UK-wide network of innovation that amplifies local strengths and unlocks national impact. It’s a recipe that works, Beauhurst data reveals that around 26% of our customers are classed as high-growth or scale-up businesses, compared with 1.39% nationally. It points to the success of our ecosystems in accelerating growth beyond early-stage.

Locating in these places offers more than space - it provides access to networks, talent and investors that turn ideas into impact. Investing in place is investing in innovation, and Bruntwood SciTech offers the environments where both can thrive.

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References:

(1) https://www.brookings.edu/articles/rise-of-innovation-districts/ (2) https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/68595e56db8e139f95652dc6/industrial_strategy_policy_paper.pdf (3) https://news.mit.edu/2017/proximity-boosts-collaboration-mit-campus-0710 (4) https://mitsloan.mit.edu/ideas-made-to-matter/what-innovation-ecosystem (5) https://www.wired.com/sponsored/story/bruntwood-scitech-scale-up