• SPARK The Midlands provides academic and business support to advance healthcare research discoveries for unmet clinical needs
• Successful applicants will receive bespoke support, including help with project plans and pitching, as well as access to the global SPARK network
• For the first time, the scheme is now also open to researchers in the East Midlands.

SPARK The Midlands, a network offering support to researchers developing innovations for unmet clinical needs in the region, based at Aston University, has launched a call for applications for its third cohort.

The network, which launched in 2024, aims to bridge the gap between medical research discoveries of novel therapeutics, medical devices and diagnostics, and real-world clinical use. Any Midlands-based researchers developing a therapeutic, medical device or diagnostic for an unmet clinical need that would eventually need regulatory approval to enter market, is eligible to apply. For the first time, SPARK The Midlands is now also open to researchers based in the East Midlands, having previously only been open to researchers in the West Midlands.

For successful applicants, the first six months of the SPARK programme consists of six one-to-one meetings on completing a target product profile, building a five-year project plan, creating a compelling narrative, pitching and effective decks, constructing a data room and addressing risk pillars.

Following this onboarding period, cohort members receive two years of bespoke support with the aim of getting the funding in place to achieve the five-year plan devised during the second team meeting. There are monthly cohort meetings to encourage members to share knowledge and expertise, tackle challenges side by side and inspire each other to go further. They also gain access to the SPARK Global network.

Since its launch, SPARK The Midlands has achieved some notable successes, including raising more than £15m in follow-on funding.

Three new spinouts have been launched, two from Aston University – Dr Jill Johnson’s company Fibraxis, which is developing a new, inhalable daily medication that halts and reverses the structural lung damage that occurs in asthma, and Dr Vivian (Zhuo) Wang’s Kleis Therapeutics, which is developing targeted molecules called transglutaminase 2 inhibitors to treat fibrotic lung diseases. A third, Solute Guard Therapeutics, which is developing treatments for autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis, is based at the University of Birmingham.

One new medical device, Aston Vision Sciences’ (AVS) Lumio device, has entered the market. This is a portable, handheld tool designed for efficient and versatile anterior eye examination.

Additionally, Crism Therapeutics, a University of Birmingham spinout focused on the localised and sustained delivery of chemotherapy drugs, has gained regulatory approval from the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to go to clinical trial in 2026 with a drug delivery system called ChemoSeed to treat glioblastoma, a type of brain cancer.

Matt Vassey, newly appointed as SPARK East Midlands director, said:

“The Midlands is home to extraordinary research talent, and with SPARK now open to the East Midlands we have a fantastic opportunity to turn more brilliant ideas into breakthroughs that change lives. As we launch our third cohort and extend support across the East Midlands, we are excited to connect with researchers and clinicians to provide tailored expertise to accelerate the translation of innovative therapies, devices and diagnostics into practice. I am excited to work alongside our new cohort and help them take bold steps towards transforming patient care.”

SPARK The Midlands is the first UK branch of Stanford University's prestigious global SPARK programme. It comes as a result of Aston University’s active involvement in the delivery of the West Midlands Health Tech Innovation Accelerator (WMHTIA) – a government-funded project aimed at helping companies drive their innovations towards market success.

Visit https://tinyurl.com/284b8s99 to submit an application.