Flourishing Oxfordshire biotech firms scooped every prize at a prestigious awards ceremony.

All six categories at the Oxford Biotech Network BioScience Awards were claimed by companies from the county, despite competition from across the south east.

The result delighted Dr Jon Rees, chief executive of the network, which aims to raise the profile of the biotech sector in the county.

He said: “More money is being raised by biotech firms in Oxfordshire than Cambridge and they are continuing to grow.

“The south east including Oxfordshire is now the main biotech cluster in Europe.”

Dr Rees added that more than £500m raised by companies in the county since 2005 and the sector not employs more than 5,000 people with about ten companies starting up this year alone, regardless of the recession.

More than 100 people gathered at Wadham College, Oxford for the awards, four of which were won by companies based at Milton Park, near Didcot.

The Best Biotech Dealmaker went to drug testing firm Evotec; Best Medtech Dealmaker was needle-free drug delivery company Glide Pharma, Best Early Stage Medtech went to medical device firm Orthox and Best Biotech Fundraising was won by drug discovery company Chroma Therapeutics.

Best Early Stage Biotech was won by protein research specialist Oxford Expression Technologies based at Oxford Brookes University’s Headington campus and Best Medtech Fundraising award was handed to Didcot-based medical device business Lombard Medical Technologies.

Brian Howlett, chief executive of Lombard Medical, said: “We are delighted to receive this award which recognises the importance of raising capital to a high technology, high potential company like Lombard Medical.”