MATT May, managing director of Malvern-based 3SDL, has been invited to join the ACCELERATE 250, a new business community made up of the fastest growing companies in the UK. Based at the Malvern Hills Science Park, 3SDL provides defence and cyber security consultancy, training and niche products to government clients and defence providers around the world.

Mr May said: “We are delighted that the hard work we have put into growing 3SDL since 2005 has been recognised. “We believe we are fundamentally different from others companies in our sector and that difference has now been recognised. “Our passion is truly making a difference to those serving on the front line.”

The ACCELERATE 250 met for the first time at ACCELERATE 2013, Britain’s first flagship festival dedicated to high-potential businesses, held in Liverpool on June 27. The festival aimed to raise the profile of the UK’s fastest growing businesses and their impact on the British economy, with the ACCELERATE 250 seen as key to mobilising wider support for entrepreneurs and start-ups.

Lord Young and Sir Terry Leahy, former chief executive of Tesco, identified representatives from the UK’s fastest growing small and medium businesses, the “vital six per cent” of companies that are creating more than half of the nation’s new jobs, and called on them to work together to identify solutions to mutual obstacles.

The group will be working closely with one another to address the key issues and shared challenges that face all growing businesses, meeting for a series of interactive discussions and debates. Members of ACCELERATE 250 come from across the UK and represent industries from food and fashion, to pharmaceuticals and finance.