Leeds-headquartered Lhasa Limited, is to host a free half-day seminar to support Yorkshire’s life sciences sector in building a resilient future. Lhasa, is a not-for-profit organisation, creating cutting-edge software solutions which are used globally to streamline drug development, reduce unnecessary animal testing, and ultimately benefit human health.

This event will be organised alongside international audit, tax and advisory firm Mazars and Huddersfield-based regulatory and quality consultants, Woodley BioReg, the event will take place from 9am on Wednesday 12 July at Lhasa’ s head office.

We want to create a forum for the life sciences sector here in Yorkshire to help consider the impact of some of these concerns, with support and valuable insight from our expert speakers. Sue Streatfield

Focusing on ‘Building resilience in the life sciences sector: Navigating an ever-changing landscape’, one of the keynote speakers, Sue Streatfield, partner in our Intellectual Property team commented: “The UK has a formidable health and life sciences ecosystem and contributes to improving lives globally. However, businesses in the life sciences sector are facing an unprecedented combination of pressures such as recruiting and retaining people with appropriate skills, increasing costs, significant changes to the regulatory landscape and the emergence of nascent technologies. We are committed to supporting the sector in building a resilient future and ensuring that the region optimises its potential as a regional hub.”

Joining experts from Clarion, Mazars and Woodley BioReg will be Thomas Hutchinson, Health and Life Science Sector Manager at West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

We will hear about an overview of the current landscape and examples of obstacles faced by life sciences businesses as well as the help available from West Yorkshire Combined Authority.

Fabien Rascagneres, Head of Global Supply Network Planning at global biopharmaceutical business AstraZeneca; Carly Haigh, Vice President of Client Services at medical communications agency Six Degrees Medical Consulting and Dr Asam Malik, Partner, Technology & Digital Consulting at Mazars will take part in a panel discussion.

Dr Ash Ramzan, Founder and Principal Consultant at Woodley BioReg, added: "The health and life sciences ecosystem in the UK is truly formidable, playing a crucial role in enhancing lives on a global scale; we continue to illustrate this including with the vaccines development activities during covid. Nevertheless, businesses within the life sciences sector are currently confronting an unparalleled convergence of challenges. These include the ongoing struggle to recruit and retain professionals possessing the necessary skills, the escalating costs associated with operations, substantial alterations to the regulatory framework, and the emergence of emerging technologies.

“In light of these concerns, we are dedicated to establishing a platform specifically tailored for the life sciences sector here in Yorkshire. This forum aims to facilitate a comprehensive examination of the potential impact posed by these challenges, offering support, guidance and invaluable insights from our esteemed panel of experts. Our unwavering commitment lies in bolstering the sector's ability to forge a resilient future, while ensuring that the region fully optimises its potential as a prominent regional life sciences hub."

Our sole focus at Lhasa is helping the life sciences sector, and related industries, to succeed. Chris Barber

Chris Barber, Chief Executive Office at Lhasa, added: “We know that understanding and adapting to evolving market conditions is critical to business success – reflected in our five company values. We are delighted to host this event, which is closely aligned with our purpose and values, and I look forward to welcoming attendees to Lhasa for this thought-provoking event.”

Tarifa Simpson, Partner, Deal advisory at Mazars said: “Post-pandemic, we’re seeing increasing momentum in in the life sciences, pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors, and, with such impressive credentials in these fields, it’s fantastic to be bringing together some of the UK’s leading businesses whose science, innovation and technology expertise can help put us on the global healthcare and life sciences map.”

The seminar starts at 9.00 and finishes at 12pm, followed by networking. 

To find out more about the event and to register, please click here.