35 'high value' jobs on way after mayor's office gives grant to £14m gene therapy centre in Sheffield

The Gene Therapy Innovation & Manufacturing Centre is expected to create 35 high value jobs in a new building near the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, just off the Sheffield Parkway at Catcliffe.

It is part of the University of Sheffield and will be one of three, with London and Bristol, that will share technical skills and resources to boost research.

HOW MUCH WILL IT ADD TO THE REGION’S ECONOMY?

And it is expected to pump an additional £28m of GVA to the region by 2027.

The £1.5m grant is from the South Yorkshire Renewal Fund run by the Mayoral Combined Authority.

In December, former chair of the authority’s business arm, James Muir, said they hoped to invest £170m into 137 high growth companies creating 7,000 jobs.

Construction work is underway and is set to complete this summer.

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Dan Jarvis, mayor of South Yorkshire, said: “It puts Sheffield right at the heart of world class research and innovation into Gene Therapy that will present a real opportunity for regional economic growth within the supply chain and job creation in South Yorkshire.

“The fact that South Yorkshire was chosen is significant – building on this region’s expertise in health and well-being research, utilising the valuable resources and expertise of the University of Sheffield. We expect this to be a catalyst for further enhancing health and well being research and development in South Yorkshire.”

WHO ELSE PUT MONEY IN?

The centre is also receiving LifeArc funding of £6.4m, £3.1m from the University of Sheffield and a £3m donation from The Law Family Charitable Foundation, established by Andrew Law and his wife Zoë.

Prof Koen Lamberts, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Sheffield, said the centre would unlock pathways for new treatments for devastating genetic disorders, ‘many of which have no cure’.

He added: “We are delighted that our University is at the forefront of research in this pioneering field of medicine and that this new centre will build on our reputation as an international centre of excellence for gene therapeutics.”

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