Pharma giant GSK quits Stevenage for Cambridge

Tony Wood, chief scientific officer at GSK, said: “Cambridge has built one of the world’s best life sciences ecosystems, with leading universities, hospitals and biotech companies.

“The campus provides exceptional opportunities for collaboration.

“With our existing connections and experience, we see this move as a catalyst for faster, bolder medicines discovery by accelerating the science that matters most for GSK’s next wave of medicines.”

Five years ago, GSK announced plans to expand their Stevenage site, with Wood claiming: “Our goal is for Stevenage to emerge as a top destination for medical and scientific research by the end of the decade.”

Now, it seems the draw of Cambridge is too strong. Bolstered by the newly opened Cambridge South Station, with direct services to Stevenage, the company says it hopes “most of its staff will move with them”.

The site in Cambridge will be part of GSK’s wider UK network of collaboration with leading academic institutions and pioneering scientific organisations, including the University of Oxford, King’s College London, Imperial College, the University of Manchester, Wellcome and the Crick Institute.

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