Professor Graham Lord
Co-Chair, SC1 London, Senior Vice-President, Health & Life Sciences, King’s College London, Executive Director, King’s Health Partners and Chief Academic Officer & Board Director, Guy’s & St. Thomas’ and King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trusts
Ruqiya Farah-Yusuf
My Life Sc1ence Programme Participant from Southwark
London’s position as a global life sciences powerhouse is the product of centuries of medical discovery, world-class universities, entrepreneurial ambition, investment, clinical excellence and, crucially, people.
Today, the city hosts to over 3,400 life sciences companies, attracts billions in investment and ranks among the world’s leading health innovation hubs. However, maintaining its position requires sustained investment in local communities in every postcode.
The prize is huge: a globally competitive sector that improves health outcomes while driving economic prosperity. SC1 London embodies this ambition. Bringing together three world-leading hospitals, a globally ranked university, an independent charitable foundation over 270 companies and two of London’s most diverse boroughs, the district is building an ecosystem that drives innovations that are shaped by and benefit our local communities.
24 Lambeth and Southwark residents not in education,
employment or training and aged 16 to 24 explored the district’s offer,
from the Brain Bank to Biobank and the Simulation and Interactive Learning Centre
AI cuts maternal ultrasound scan time
Innovations like King’s College London spin-out, FrAIya, demonstrate what is possible when research, entrepreneurship and investment come together to tackle an urgent health challenge. FrAIya provides AI-powered tools that reduce maternal ultrasound scan time by around 42% and improve the detection of conditions such as congenital heart disease.
Nurturing local health science talent
Breakthroughs don’t emerge overnight. They rely on a pipeline of talent, curiosity and opportunity, which begins long before a company is spun out or funded. If London and the UK are to remain at the forefront of health and life sciences, we must find, nurture and retain talent in the communities around us.
That is why programmes like My Life SC1ence matter. Through paid work experience, 24 Lambeth and Southwark residents not in education, employment or training and aged 16 to 24 explored the district’s offer, from the Brain Bank to Biobank and the Simulation and Interactive Learning Centre.
Empowering youth fuels future innovation
Ruqiya Farah-Yusuf, a Southwark participant, shares: “It was refreshing to see people of colour, LGBTQIA+, neurodivergent and female professionals in these environments. Through the programme, I could see I was believed in and felt seen. My Life Sc1ence shows that when society invests in its young people and develops a culture of community, belief and inclusion, great things happen.”
Supporting innovation to commercialisation is essential, but it’s not enough. London’s future success will depend equally on the people it empowers to create the next generation of breakthroughs.
