Figures released at the RAL Space Conference earlier this month show that Harwell Space Cluster grew by 19% over the 12 months to the beginning of December — from 80 to 89 organisations and from about 800 people to more than 950.

It is the UK’s most concentrated space cluster, with a group of commercial, public and academic organisations focused on driving innovation in the UK space market and supporting the UK space sector, as it aims for a 10% share of the global market by 2030.

With the main stakeholders of the cluster being the European Space Agency, the Satellite Applications Catapult, the UK Space Agency and STFC RAL Space, the cluster is attracting many companies to set up operations at Harwell Campus.

The funding and collaboration opportunities are extensive, and businesses ranging from start-ups to multi-nationals all benefit from being co-located with over £2 billion of national science facilities.

Harwell Space Cluster (www.harwellcampus.com/space-cluster) development manager Joanna Hart said: “We are celebrating job creation in Oxfordshire, as well as the vital role that space organisations based at Harwell Campus take in shaping the UK space sector.

"We have a unique talent pool in the area, and as the Space Cluster continues to grow, we want to create more jobs, taking advantage not only of the science and technology capabilities of people in the region but also the entrepreneurs and people working in the knowledge economy that enable the cluster to thrive.”