The technology, media and telecoms sector in the North West continues to thrive, with the region鈥檚 six key聽clusters now home to 755 companies, according to new research.
Deloitte鈥檚 TMT hotspots, which were first identified in 2012, include MediaCityUK, The Sharp Project, Sci-Tech Daresbury, near Runcorn and Warrington, the Ropewalks/Baltic Triangle areas in Liverpool, Manchester Science Partnerships and Liverpool Science Park.
The clusters have been classified based on their high concentration of TMT businesses, taking into account the infrastructure they have in place and the potential for future development.
The region鈥檚 biggest hotspot is MediaCityUK, which is currently home to 275 TMT businesses, followed by the Ropewalks/Baltic Triangle areas with 200 businesses, Sci-Tech Daresbury with 120, the Sharp Project with 65, Manchester Science Partnerships with 60 and Liverpool Science Park with 35.
鈥淥nce again these numbers paint a positive picture and show that the region鈥檚 TMT sector is incredibly buoyant,鈥� Claire Jolly, head of TMT at Deloitte in the North West, said.
鈥淢ediaCityUK in particular has proven itself to be a major hub for technology, media and telecoms activity, while also becoming a destination in itself. The smaller clusters we鈥檝e identified are also making impressive advances in a range of areas including medtech, biotech and engineering, which is encouraging to see.鈥�
Sir Howard Bernstein, strategic adviser at Deloitte in the North West, added: “The TMT sector in the North West is a key element of the Northern Powerhouse.
“These collaborative hubs of innovation and TMT expertise are vital to the economy in the region and the UK as a whole.
鈥淲ith the right kind of encouragement and support from policy makers, I’d expect to see accelerated growth in these areas in the near future.”