Up to 5,000 jobs could be created with the building of a multi-million-pound science park on the outskirts of Bristol.

Bristol and Bath Universities are jointly building a "centre of excellence" at the Emerson's Green site.

The Academic Innovation Centre aims to take the hottest new research ideas and turn them into money spinners, developing commercial uses for products conceived by academics.

It has taken 11 years for the future of the site to be sealed and it is hoped it will encourage graduates to stay in the area and boost the number of skilled workers.

'Conduit'

The two universities have formed a company, Emerson's Innovations Ltd. Its chief executive, Peter Maxwell, said: "By bringing the two research universities together we can create a research base as big as anywhere in Europe.

"When we have a bright idea in the university it will help us communicate that to the commercial world.

"It is a conduit for bringing together the business and academic worlds."

The science park would be part of a larger 63-acre development of the site, called QWest, which is expected to cost more than �160m to build and would include offices and other commercial buildings.

Outline planning permission for part of the site has been granted and it is hoped to get the infrastructure in place in the next three months and start building work by the end of the year.