Stevenage and Bucks space and defence firms get Autumn Statement cash

Defence and space firms in Stevenage and Buckinghamshire are to receive millions in funding

The Autumn Statement has included £47m for UK space research and manufacturing which will see firms in Stevenage and Buckinghamshire benefit.

Airbus in Stevenage, URA Thrusters at Westcott Venture Park, Aylesbury, and an Open University partnership in Milton Keynes will get government cash.

The British space sector is worth £17.5bn, according to the government-run UK Space Agency.

The support aims to boost jobs and is match-funded by the private sector.

Dr Paul Bate, chief executive of the UK Space Agency, said: "The Space Clusters Infrastructure Fund (SCIF) highlights the government's commitment to space and will help deliver the goal set out in the national space strategy to build one of the most innovative and attractive space economies in the world, developing new skills and creating jobs."

Airbus Defence and Space, in Hertfordshire, will receive £3.9m, towards a catalyst facility.

The UK Space Agency said it would help provide industrial grade research and development facilities "to develop, de-risk, validate and verify technology" across the space mission and service life cycle for civil, defence and commercial use.

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Meanwhile, URA Thrusters in Aylesbury, which deals in propulsion, is being awarded £5.9m for its proposal for a 62,000 sq ft (5,759 sq m) development including training facilities, communal space and shared technical facilities available for industry and academia to rent.

The Centre for Modelling and Simulation (CFMS) in Bristol will develop the Collaborative Space Data Centre with the Open University in Milton Keynes, "to address a strategic gap in commercial data centre provision for the space industry", the UK Space Agency said.

The dedicated space data centre will support advanced technologies such as simulation, AI, and robotics testing.

The government said 12 UK firms and their projects would benefit from a total of £98m when match-funding from the private sector was added.