On Thursday 15 January 2026, the IPT were delighted to take a cross-party delegation of MPs to Harwell, the UK’s former centre for research into civil nuclear power with Nuclear Restoration Services, the organisation responsible for safely and securely decommissioning the site (part of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority group). The group consisted of Dame Harriett Baldwin MP, Graham Stuart MP, Wera Hobhouse MP and Mike Reader MP.

The visit began with a brief overview of the history and context of the Harwell Site from Laura Street, the Harwell Site Manager. We then drove around the site, finishing at the Radiochemistry and Laboratory complex. Here, Laura and colleagues from NRS and NDA outlined the wider challenges they are tackling - such as attracting younger generations to careers on legacy nuclear sites and building a sustainable future workforce through apprenticeships and other development schemes. We then had a quick break for refreshments before hearing from Rob Fletcher, CEO of NRS, who outlined the organisation’s work and long‑term ambitions for the site. This was followed by an open Q&A session.

We then continued our tour of the site, identifying additional potential areas of land which could be released for other uses to benefit the community when they’re no longer required to deliver the NDA’s mission and viewing the remaining facilities scheduled for decommissioning. We concluded the visit at the DIDO Materials Test Reactor, shut down in 1990 and now moving through its decommissioning programme. Once a high‑flux research reactor used to test materials for nuclear power, it now serves as a museum space. Parliamentarians were able to tour the facility and even got the opportunity to stand above the former reactor itself.

We would like to thank NRS and NDA for making this visit possible, as well as the parliamentarians who attended. We look forward to continuing engaging MPs and Peers with industry through the IPT Fellowship Programme and our upcoming Industry Visits.