Growth
Sharing your success, best
practice, and lessons learned
City slick
Liverpool forecasts a knowledge
economy breakthrough
P
Chris Musson
Chief Executive,
Liverpool Science Park
Chris brings a unique mixture
of experience to the Liverpool
team, having operated for
many years at senior levels in
the public, private, and not-for-
profit sectors
olicy fads and new initiatives
are always seductive,
especially in the field of
regional development. The
favoured policy is currently the
development of Innovation Districts, with
their focus on physically compact urban
areas, where leading edge institutions
and companies connect with startups,
business incubators and accelerators
– walkable neighbourhoods where
housing, jobs and amenities mingle.
There is always a temptation for cities
to try to reflect this new wrapper in their
strategies, but it is often quickly apparent
after a little scratching beneath the
surface that the reality is less than skin
deep. However, this policy could have
R e a d o n l i n e at: u k s pa . o r g . u k / b r e a k t h r o u g h
been written especially for Liverpool
and its Knowledge Quarter.
Of course, like most things in life,
we are dealt a hand and we play it. This
is certainly true around the optimal
location of science parks and technology
focussed spaces. Each of our locations
was chosen for a reason at some point
in the past. You work with it and at
some point, like most policies or
thinking, you will either be in fashion
or out of fashion. How you play your
hand is important. If you are on the
crest of the in-thinking, you make the
most of it. If the fad changes, your
strengths will still be your strengths.
When Liverpool Science Park (LSP)
was first mooted in the early 2000s, the
w i n t e r 2 0 17 | U K S PA B RE A K T H R O U G H | 51