UK city Milton Keynes has secured funding from the Barclays Eagle Labs Ecosystem and the UK Government to support the city’s Smart City goals.

Milton Keynes is one of the UK’s leading smart city development sites. The smart city is being developed within a tech and urban ecosystem developed since the 1960s as a European urban pioneer city, blending high tech and ecological functions. Built adjoining Bletchley Park, Milton Keynes hosts a number of high tech firms, especially in electronics, software and aerospace.

Milton Keynes has become a major site for smart city trials, especially initiatives to help modern cities become greener and more pleasant places to live and work. Milton Keynes was built from the 1960s onwards on a green field site to blend rural, urban and high tech in a mixed environment.

Current live trials in the city involve self-driving shuttles, urban drone deliveries, and advanced radio communications. One in three jobs in the city is in technology, and the city council and its partners plan to grow and connect the tech ecosystem in the city.

Development will be carried out by city partner Protospace, who will receive funding to accelerate the growth of tech and digital businesses in the city.

Development will focus on:

• Strengthening MK’s tech networks: encouraging collaboration among tech professionals
• Identifying challenges and opportunities: creating a forum to discuss sector-specific challenges and opportunities
• Professional development: ongoing learning and development to enhance skills in the sector
• Increasing accessibility: making the tech sector more approachable and open to encourage diverse participation
• Barclays will also be an integral partner in a number of the events and in strategic work.

“We’re really ambitious about our tech and innovation prospects in Milton Keynes, and programmes like this will further establish our city as a world leader in the sector. We’re determined to grow and connect the sector with further investment to give start-ups the opportunities to flourish. It’s fantastic to have Eagle Labs onboard who will provide us and Protospace with unrivalled resources and expertise to supercharge our tech and innovation sectors.” said Cabinet Member for Economy, Sustainability and Innovation, Cllr Shanika Mahendran.

“Using our Ecosystem Partnership Programme, we are allocating funding to organisations that are already plugged into their national and regional ecosystems. Our support Milton Keynes City Council and similar organisations highlights our ongoing commitment to support the tech sector, which is vital to the continued growth of local economies across the whole of the UK.” said Amanda Allan, Director of Barclays Eagle Labs.

“Milton Keynes, known as a smart city and a test bed for cutting-edge innovation, is uniquely positioned to lead in technology advancements. With its supportive start-up and scale-up ecosystem, we are committed to making it a leading hub for technology and innovation, both locally and globally.” said Oliver Waters, Director of Protospace.