Statistical Bulletin April 2021 Life Science industries in Kent Related Life science industries are those which are documents involved with pharmaceuticals, medical For more information on technology (devices and diagnostics) and the economy in Kent medical biotechnology. They contribute please visit our webpages toward human health and the well-being of the Economy and Employment population. These include information This bulletin looks at the number of about Business in Kent, enterprises and employee jobs in life science Business Sectors, industries in Kent. Earnings and Income, Employment, Summary Unemployment and Kent’s • workforce 2.6% of businesses in Kent as at 2020 were life science enterprises, slightly lower than the NOTE: within this bulletin England average of 2.8% ’Kent’ refers to the Kent County Council (KCC) area • Maidstone district has the highest number of life which excludes Medway science enterprises (215) in Kent. • The majority of life science enterprises in Kent (77.2%) are human health industries (which Further Information includes hospitals, medical and dental practices) Kent Analytics • 8.4% of employee jobs in Kent are in life science Kent County Council (9.3% in the South East, 8.8% in England) Invicta House Maidstone • Life science jobs have grown by 7.4% national Kent since 2015. Kent saw a small reduction of 1.0%. ME14 1XX • The majority of life science employee jobs in Email: Kent (83.8%) are in human health industries [email protected] Tel: 03000 417444 Kent Analytics, Kent County Council www.kent.gov.uk/research Introduction Life science industries are those which are involved with pharmaceuticals, medical technology (devices and diagnostics) and medical biotechnology. They contribute toward human health and the well-being of the population. In 2017 the government launched its Life Science Industrial Strategy and subsequent Life Sciences Sector Deals to develop the existing strength of the life sciences sector, encourage the development of new pioneering treatments and medical technologies and to increase the economic growth in the sector. Data on the pharmaceutical and medical technology sectors is based on Standard Industry Classification (SIC) codes (SIC 2007). This is the main classification system used for EU industrial statistics, however, the only categories for life science industries within the classification are those for companies whose primary activity is manufacturing (e.g. pharmaceuticals and medical devices) or those whose primary activity is research in biotechnology (which includes non-health biotechnology). The classification system does not adequately reflect the size and shape of the UK life science sector as a whole as many sub-sectors cannot be separately identified. For the purposes of this bulletin we have extended the definition of life science to include: 2007 SIC Life Science Industries Medical & Pharmaceutical Production 21 Manufacture Of Basic Pharmaceutical Products And Pharmaceutical Preparations 26.6 Manufacture of irradiation, electromedical & electrotherapeutic equipment 32.5 Manufacture of medical & dental instruments & supplies Human Health 86.1 Hospital activities 86.2 Medical and dental practice activities 86.9 Other human health activities (includes activities of nurses, midwives, physiotherapists or other paramedical practitioners, laboratories and diagnostic testing, Xray and imaging, blood banks) Wholesale & retail 46.46 Wholesale of pharmaceutical goods 46.75 Wholesale of chemical products 47.73 Dispensing chemist in specialist store 47.74 Retail of medical and orthopaedic goods in specialist store Research & experimental development 72.11 Research & experimental development on biotechnology 72.19 Other research & experimental development on natural sciences and engineering This bulletin looks at the number of enterprises and the number of employee jobs created by the industry in Kent and Medway compared to the South East and England. Kent Analytics, Kent County Council Page 1 www.kent.gov.uk/research Enterprises The estimated number of enterprises comes from information from the UK Business Counts dataset produced by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The UK Business Counts dataset is an extract compiled from the Inter Departmental Business Register (IDBR) which contains information on VAT traders and PAYE employers. The UK Business Counts dataset records the number of enterprises that were live at a reference date in March each year giving a snap shot of businesses that were live at this point in time. It is broken down by size band, industry, turnover and age of business. Further information about the methodology used for producing these data is available from the Office for National Statistics. The latest data is for 2020. Employee jobs The number of employee jobs in the manufacturing sector comes from information from the Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES) produced by the ONS. The BRES is a sample survey which collects employment information from businesses across the whole of the Great Britain economy for each site that they operate. The survey covers all businesses in Great Britain registered for VAT and/or PAYE. BRES does not cover the very small businesses neither registered for VAT nor PAYE, neither does it include self employed workers unless they are registered for VAT or PAYE. The data provides us with an estimate of employee jobs and total employment (number of employees plus the number of working owners) BRES is a sample survey and produces estimated employment figures. These estimates are of a good quality at higher levels of geography (for example region), however the quality of the estimates deteriorates as the geographies get smaller. This should be taken into account when considering the quality of county and district estimates. The survey provides us with estimates of employees by industrial sector. The manufacturing sector used in this bulletin is defined using the 2007 Standard Industrial Classification (2007SIC). Detailed information about the types of industry which make up each of the industrial sectors is available from the UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities published by the Office for National Statistics. In accordance with official guidelines the data is rounded to the nearest 100 prior to publication. Percentages are calculated using unrounded data. The latest data is for 2019. Kent Analytics, Kent County Council Page 2 www.kent.gov.uk/research Life Science Industry Enterprises The UK Business Counts dataset records the number of enterprises that were live as at March each year, giving a snap shot of businesses that were operating at this point in time. It is broken down by size band, industry and turnover. All numbers are rounded at source. Values may be rounded down to zero and so all zeros are not necessarily true zeros. Totals across tables may differ by minor amounts due to the disclosure methods used. 2.8% of enterprises in England were life science enterprises as at 2020. The South East region is equal to the national figure at 2.8%. The South East had the second highest number of life science enterprises (11,585) after London (14,430). Table 1: Life science enterprises by region Life Science enterprises Change since last year 5 year change 2020 Number % Number % Number % England 66,745 2.8% 910 1.4% 2,700 4.2% North West 8,670 3.2% 115 1.3% 375 4.5% Yorkshire and The Humber 5,650 3.0% 130 2.4% 380 7.2% West Midlands 6,510 2.9% 135 2.1% 310 5.0% North East 2,055 2.9% -20 -1.0% -15 -0.7% South East 11,585 2.8% 125 1.1% 580 5.3% East 7,465 2.8% 45 0.6% 365 5.1% London 14,430 2.7% 265 1.9% 335 2.4% East Midlands 4,795 2.6% 15 0.3% 85 1.8% South West 5,585 2.4% 100 1.8% 285 5.4% Source: UK Business Counts Presented by: Kent Analytics, Kent County Council The number of life science enterprises has grown over the last five years, up 4.2% nationally. The South East region saw a 5.3% increase in life science enterprises over the last five years, above the national average. Kent had a slightly smaller proportion of life science enterprises than the regional average as at March 2019. 1,670 life science enterprises in the county accounted for 2.6% of all enterprises in Kent. Maidstone district had the highest number of life science enterprises in the Kent County Council area (215) while Dover district had the highest proportion (3.4%, 120 enterprises). In the wider Kent and Medway area Medway unitary authority had 245 life science enterprises accounting for 2.7% of all enterprises in that area. Kent Analytics, Kent County Council Page 3 www.kent.gov.uk/research Table 2: Life science enterprises Total Life Science enterprises enterprises Change since last year 5 year change 2020 Number Number % Number % Number % Ashford 6,575 155 2.4% 5 3.3% 15 10.7% Canterbury 5,400 165 3.1% 15 10.0% -5 -2.9% Dartford 4,855 120 2.5% -10 -7.7% 0 0.0% Dover 3,570 120 3.4% -5 -4.0% 10 9.1% Folkestone & Hythe 3,750 75 2.0% -5 -6.3% -15 -16.7% Gravesham 4,045 120 3.0% 5 4.3% 20 20.0% Maidstone 7,650 215 2.8% 0 0.0% -5 -2.3% Sevenoaks 6,710 160 2.4% 5 3.2% 10 6.7% Swale 5,020 110 2.2% -5 -4.3% 0 0.0% Thanet 4,050 95 2.3% -5 -5.0% -5 -5.0% Tonbridge & Malling 6,055 150 2.5% -10 -6.3% -5 -3.2% Tunbridge Wells 6,330 175 2.8% 0 0.0% 10 6.1% Kent 64,005 1,670 2.6% 0 0.0% 40 2.5% Medway 8,885 240 2.7% -5 -2.0% -10 -4.0% Kent + Medway 72,890 1,910 2.6% -5 -0.3% 30 1.6% South East Region 418,370 11,585 2.8% 125 1.1% 580 5.3% England 2,390,970 66,745 2.8% 910 1.4% 2,700 4.2% Source: UK Business Counts Presented by: Kent Analytics, Kent County Council The number of life science enterprises in Kent and Medway MSOAs is shown in the following map.