University of Birmingham and SAH Diagnostics among the brands backing the UK’s leading life sciences conference

The University of Birmingham and SAH Diagnostics are among the major brands supporting this year’s Life Sciences Week.

The programme of events, taking place in and around Birmingham and the West Midlands, runs from Monday, September 21, to Friday, September 25.

Now in its second year, Life Sciences Week 2026 promises to have a greater national and international focus, mirroring the mindset of the sector leaders it attracts.

The UK life sciences sector employs over 300,000 people across nearly 7,000 businesses, generating around £100 billion annually in economic contribution. Total turnover reached £146.9bn in 2023/24, accounting for 17% of all UK business R&D spend. 

The rapidly expanding sector currently contributes around £6bn in GVA (gross value added) to the Midlands economy. It is forecast to need to fill around 10,000 more roles by 2030, a rise of more than a third.

University of Birmingham backs Life Sciences Week

Professor Neil Hanley, Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the College of Medicine and Health, University of Birmingham, said: “The West Midlands region is quietly transforming itself as a major life sciences hub for the British healthcare industry and beyond, delivering clinical trials and device production, and drawing in innovative start-ups to a Health and Life Sciences District in Edgbaston-Selly Oak with a £1bn, five-year cycle of new R&D awards. 

“But don’t take my word for it. Come and see for yourselves what’s happening here by registering for Life Sciences 2026.”

SAH Diagnostics backs Life Sciences Week

Feroz Agad, CEO of SAH Diagnostics, which is one of the private healthcare businesses set to attend Life Sciences Week, said: “The NHS and government have a real opportunity to harness private sector innovation to improve patient outcomes and help meet the growing pressures on our healthcare system. Screening programmes should be delivered more equitably across conditions, from breast, prostate and skin cancer to other major diseases, so that patients have fair access to early diagnosis and intervention.

“We also need to move away from short-term thinking. Three-to-five-year funding settlements and commissioning arrangements, rather than annual budget cycles, would give the NHS and its partners the stability to plan effectively, invest in innovation and prevention, and deliver sustainable improvements instead of continually responding to immediate pressures.

“By focusing on prevention, partnership and long-term thinking, we can build a more resilient healthcare system that delivers better outcomes for patients.”

The event’s co-founder, Professor Paul Cadman, CEO of the One Thousand Trades Group, said: “The UK’s  life sciences sector is brimming with innovation and ambition, and we need the Government to match this in its approach to fiscal policy and regulation. We have the talent. We now need to create the right environment for the health tech and biotech pioneers of tomorrow to flourish.”

He added: “The UK life sciences sector represents 17% of all UK business R&D spend and is the country’s third largest goods export, but since 2017 we have slipped from second to eighth globally for life sciences investment, costing around £15bn annually in lost competitiveness. Life Sciences Week is our way of shining a spotlight on the world-leading ingenuity and expertise that exist in this sector in the UK.”

Registration for Life Sciences Week 2026 is open at lifesciencesweek.co.uk.

Two pharma execs join the Life Sciences Week board

Earlier this year, Life Sciences Week appointed two senior pharmaceutical industry figures to its advisory board.

Amjad Khan, a former senior leader at Pfizer, on being appointed to the Life Sciences Week advisory board as Executive Partner, said:  “I am thrilled to join a team building on the strong foundation laid by last year’s inaugural Life Sciences Week. Life Sciences Week 2026 will have a very clear focus that will offer real value to participating brands.”

Shabnam Raja, who spent seven years at GSK and joined the Life Sciences Week advisory board as an Advisory Partner, added: “Life Sciences Week is the most exciting development in the UK life sciences sector right now, with a distinct focus on delivering outcomes for the people and companies who participate.”