Evaluation of NEXXUS: the West of Scotland Bioscience Network

NEXXUS was formed in 2003 with the aim of: facilitating communication, knowledge sharing and collaboration between organisations involved in life sciences and related activities in the West of Scotland; and raising the profile locally and nationally of the West of Scotland as a life science centre and contributing to any Scottish Enterprise activity on an international basis. It holds events, distributes a newsletter and bulletin, and provides information via a website.

The evaluation involved 55 telephone or face to face interviews conducted with NEXXUS participants and 5 interviews with people external to the network, including Steering Group members across the four user groups of university/NHS, businesses, young scientist and public sector/ support providers. It also drew on a review of NEXXUS and strategy documents.

The respondents were overwhelmingly positive about NEXXUS, and identified benefits including the opportunity for participants to make connections, to keep up to date and to raise their profile. Almost all consultees believe that they would not have realised all these benefits in the absence of NEXXUS and almost half considered that they would not have received any of the benefits in the absence of NEXXUS. The authors estimate that the impact directly attributable to NEXXUS to date could be: up to £2.3 million net additional GVA in the West of Scotland and up to £2.9 million across Scotland; and up to 51 net additional fte (full time equivalent) jobs supported in the West of Scotland and up to 64 across Scotland. They conclude that NEXXUS is successfully meeting its objectives and is playing a valuable strategic and operational role in joining up the life sciences sector in the West of Scotland.

The report suggests that NEXXUS could consider growing its profile raising activities and developing closer links with established and emerging life sciences networks in the rest of Scotland. It recommends that the Steering Group should look to increase the funding contribution of the private sector – possibly through a subscription fee or more sponsorship of events.