Wickham Laboratories Ltd is a contract testing laboratory that supports the

pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field an ...

and medical device industries. Located in

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, it was founded in 1962 and remains an independent company.History of Wickham Labs. http://wickhamlabs.co.uk/history/

History

The company was founded by veterinarian, William B. Cartmell, who established a veterinary practice at Wickham, Fareham,

in 1954. As the business grew, he developed facilities and animal care techniques, including the construction of an animal hospital along with founding another six branches, then an animal hospital. A laboratory facility was developed in order to improve treatment to animals. In 1962, Wickham Laboratories Ltd was incorporated as a separate company to provide contract testing services on behalf of pharmaceutical companies, doctors, farmers, and animal-feed manufacturers which included microbiology and chemistry testing. Mr Cartmell remains the company's Managing Director. Wickham Laboratories Ltd relocated to its current site at Hoeford Point in Gosport, in 2012. Shortly after the move, in 2015, Wickham Laboratories Ltd appointed a new CEO, Dr John McKenzie, The company currently employs around 130 staff. The facility is subject to regular compliance auditing by relevant regulatory authorities including the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the US

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

(FDA).

Controversy

2003 Animal Burglary

Keith Mann Keith Mann is a British animal rights campaigner and direct action activist who acted as a spokesman for the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), and was alleged by police in 2005 to be a ringleader for the ALF. He was imprisoned twice, and is the au ...

and one other activist from the

Animal Liberation Front The Animal Liberation Front (ALF) is an international, leaderless, decentralized political and social resistance movement that engages in and promotes non-violent direct action in protest against incidents of animal cruelty. It originated in th ...

(ALF) broke into Wickham Laboratories on December 13, 2003, and stole 695 mice that were being used to test Dysport, made from botulinum toxin. This medicine is licensed in the UK to treat serious illnesses such as cerebral palsy. Symptoms of other illnesses the medicine treats include eye muscle contractions whereby a person cannot open their eyes, or suffering through chronic facial twitches and muscle spasms which can mean the inability to walk or move properly. Animals are used for research of this medicine where there is no alternative method.Understanding Animal Research http://www.understandinganimalresearch.org.uk/policy/regulation/ The drug is used in cosmetic surgery clinics to erase frown lines. It has been illegal to use animals to test for cosmetic purposes in the UK since 1998.Cosmetics UK http://www.understandinganimalresearch.org.uk/about_research/myths_and_facts Mann was arrested at his home and the mice were returned to the laboratory.Mann, Keith. ''From Dusk 'til Dawn: An insider's view of the growth of the Animal Liberation Movement''. Puppy Pincher Press, 2007, p. 630. He argued in court that the tests carried out by Wickham Laboratories were illegal because the product was being tested for cosmetic purposes, which is banned in Britain. The court rejected his defence, and found that the tests complied with British regulations because Dysport that was being tested is used for therapeutic purposes only. Mann initially received a verdict of 230 hours of community service with no jail time, but as he left the dock, proceeded to make threatening comments to Wickham Laboratories Ltd’s technical director at the time, Chris Bishop, and was immediately thereafter found in contempt of court and sentenced to 6 months in jail.
"Animal rights activist jailed after threatening scientist". ''Independent UK'', 30 April 2005 Melvyn Glintenkamp was given 170 hours of community service for aiding and abetting Mann by allowing him to keep the stolen mice in a caravan at his home.Portsmouth Newspaper Articl
Animal protester jailed after court threat
''The News'', 30 April 2005; see als

accessed October 31, 2009.

2009 BUAV investigation – 2010 Home Office Report

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...

'' published details in November 2009 of an eight-month undercover infiltration investigation conducted by the BUAV.Daily Echo - Animal tests probed after cruelty Claim
/ref> Following a year-long investigation into the report, the Home Office published its own conclusionsA review on the issues and concerns raised in the report, “The Ugly Truth – a BUAV investigation at Wickham Laboratories”.
Animals Scientific Procedures Inspectorate noting, ''“Licence and Certificate authorities to permit work under ASPA 1986 were, and are, in place at Wickham Laboratories... The authorities granted by the Home Office under ASPA were issued legitimately and with appropriate reference to current requirements for authorised medicinal products”'' The home office ministerial statement said: ''“the majority of concerns raised by the BUAV in their report have not been substantiated”''.The Ministerial Statement https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wms/?id=2010-11-30a.68WS.3

Notes

External links

Wickham Laboratories

{{alibend, state=collapsed

Laboratories A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physici ...

Animal testing in the United Kingdom