Milly Farrell, Research and Consultancy Support Officer in the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, reports on the event.
On Tuesday 15 September, as part of our 150th anniversary celebrations, Oxford Brookes hosted a ‘BioTuesday’ event in collaboration with the Oxfordshire Bioscience Network (OBN). OBN formed at Oxford Brookes as a spin out in 2008 and is now a thriving company, supporting and bringing together the UK’s emerging life sciences companies, corporate partners and investors. The evening was also an occasion to celebrate the soon-to-be completed Bioinnovation Hub facilities at Brookes which are underway in the Tonge building.
The event had an excellent turnout from Brookes Health and Life Sciences staff and students. OBN support staff were also on hand to attend and support our team in organising the occasion. We also welcomed a wide range of professionals working in local bioscience industry. For many, this was the first time they had visited the new John Henry Brookes Building, which marks Brookes' ambition to play a leading role in creating the skilled workers of the future, for companies such as those within the life sciences cluster and beyond.
Main speakers (left to right): Jon Rees, Linda King, Nigel Groome, Victor Bolanos Garcia, Robert Possee and Matthew Frohn
The first half of the event involved a series of talks documenting various Brookes success stories; from multi-million pound licensing deals, spin-outs, graduate entrepreneurs, investors and of course OBN. The event opened with a welcome from Professor Linda King, PVC in Research and Knowledge Transfer at Oxford Brookes. This was followed by a series of talks and a panel debate, all hosted by Matthew Frohn, Partner at Longwall Ventures and a Brookes Bioscience alumnus.
Our main speakers and panellists included: Professor Nigel Groome, Emeritus Professor, Oxford Brookes University; Professor Robert Possee, Founding Director, Oxford Expression Technologies; Dr Jon Rees, Founding CEO, OBN; Dr Victor M Bolanos-Garcia, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Biochemistry, Oxford Brookes University. The key topics discussed included Brookes' plans to support young SMEs, how the University partners with SMEs, the history of Brookes Life Sciences commercial success, and its core ambition to provide the “next generation” of scientists and technically qualified staff.
The second half of the event involved a bustling networking session in the Abercrombie Atrium, where all attendees took the opportunity to network and further discuss the various topics raised during the panel session. We have had some excellent feedback on the event, which looks set to be the first occasion of many as the Brookes Bioinnovation Hub continues to grow and link with the biosciences sector.
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