UK Photonics Sector Generates £18.5bn as Experts Debate Growth Strategy
The UK photonics industry contributed £8.6bn to the economy in 2024 and employs over 75,000 people, but experts at the Photon2026 conference warn that skills development and translational research must improve to sustain growth.
The UK photonics industry generated £18.5bn in revenue in 2024, a 20% increase from 2022, and contributed £8.6bn to the national economy, according to figures from the UK Photonics Leadership Group. The sector now employs more than 75,000 people across over 1,200 firms, making it one of the country's most economically productive manufacturing areas. These numbers were presented at the Photon2026 conference in Newcastle, organised by the Institute of Physics, where hundreds of delegates gathered to assess the challenges and opportunities facing optics and photonics in the UK and EU.
John Lincoln, chief executive of the UK Photonics Leadership Group, told a panel debate that the UK «is really good at photonics and it should be something that the UK celebrates». He attributed part of this success to the wide geographical spread of photonics companies. Northern Ireland, for example, is Europe's largest manufacturer of lasers by volume, producing a million lasers per day, and is on course to become the world's largest by 2028. A national UK roadmap for photonics is expected to be published soon, with recommendations to further boost the sector. By 2035, photonics is estimated to become a £50bn industry, with more than 60% of the UK economy directly depending on it to stay competitive, and an additional 150,000 direct jobs expected.
The panel debate, co-ordinated by physicist Jolyon De Freitas, chair of the IOP Optical Group, together with the European Optical Society, highlighted both strengths and gaps. Ruth Oulton from the University of Bristol, who specialises in semiconductor quantum dots, said many companies, including those in the US, want to move to the UK given its focus and support for photonics and quantum. «The UK government has a very strong and coherent story to tell and it gives a bit of stability and clarity for people coming here, which is really promising,» she said. Optics and photonics have important applications in telecommunications, space, quantum technologies, defence and security. John Howell from Chapman University in the US, immediate past president of the International Commission for Optics, noted that improving access to optics and photonics instrumentation in the developing world can boost environmental and water monitoring and disease detection.
Laura Young from the University of Newcastle, who works on medical technologies, argued that the UK could improve by making the most of «translational opportunities» when applying optics to medical devices and getting benefits to patients. «Taking those early developments all the way through to products that have commercial or societal impact also makes it a more inviting domain for new talent to come to the UK,» she said. Chris Johnson, chief scientific adviser for the UK's newly renamed Department of Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, which in July absorbed the science and innovation portfolios of the former Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under new UK prime minister Andy Burnham, said photonics still has room for improvement in applications. He pointed to synthetic biology, which has engaged with venture capitalists to grow from small and medium enterprises to larger businesses, and said the photonics sector must plan not only to generate start-ups and spin-outs but also to plot their trajectory beyond that.
The UK also has a strong history in photonics research, with some 20% of global publications in the field originating in the country. Yet Oulton, who also advises the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on quantum technologies, said scientists should explain more clearly to policy-makers why support for photonics needs to continue. She stressed the importance of providing evidence for success and making international comparisons, rather than solely presenting a wish list of support. «Make sure to read white papers the government produces like the modern industrial strategy,» she added. Lincoln agreed, saying researchers must clearly explain how photonics is critical to emerging technologies such as AI, energy, quantum and connectivity. He added that the government needs to embrace the complexity of photonics and its many applications and ensure a talent pipeline exists at all levels. «One of the things we are calling for is to make sure that skills support goes beyond PhD to engineers and technicians,» he said.
The panel debate at Photon2026 was the first time such an event has been hosted at a Photon meeting. It was moderated by Anne Crean, associate director for science, business and data insights at the IOP, who noted that the UK and EU are «global leaders» in photonics, featuring world-class research institutions, innovative companies and strong partnerships. She added that collaboration between the UK and EU will be «vital» in maintaining and advancing that position.
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