News

AWE’s annual Christmas charity collection saw AWE staff generously donate food, essentials, toys and clothing to a number of deserving charities. COVID-safe collection points were staffed by volunteers at the two sites, allowing staff to drop off charitable donations. Altogether an impressive 1.5 tonnes of food, one van full of essentials and clothes, along with many […]

Since 2016 AWE, in collaboration with the Royal Academy of Engineering and the University of Bristol, has supported a fellowship at the University of Bristol, led by Professor Tom Scott. Prof. Scott’s research and eminence in materials science has contributed to AWE’s work, in particular the development of radiation detection and mapping technologies. The relationship […]

AWE is celebrating a hat-trick with success in all of its shortlisted categories at the recent Employee Benefits Awards 2021. These industry awards recognise excellence and celebrate those who have made a significant difference through their reward and benefits strategies. AWE had success in all of the three categories that it was shortlisted for – […]

AWE is proud of its relationship with charity partner Thrive and its amazing work it does. The Reading-based charity uses gardening and plants to improve the health and wellbeing of its clients who have a wide range of disabilities, health conditions and support needs. Over the last three years AWE and its staff have raised […]

AWE welcomes the Chief Nuclear Inspector’s Annual Report 2020/21 published today (19 October 2021) by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR). We are pleased that the ONR acknowledges continued safety improvements in many areas at our Aldermaston and Burghfield sites over the reporting period (1 April 2020 – 31 March 2021). A decision will be […]

AWE has published its latest Gender Pay Gap Report. The report covers data for this year and last year in line with Government publications guidance during the COVID 19 pandemic. Read more here

AWE‘s Chief Executive Officer, Alison Atkinson, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. She is one of 69 academics, business leaders and innovators elected to the Fellowship, for their outstanding contributions to engineering and technology.

On 17 August, the United States’ Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) announced that it had obtained a 1.3 MegaJoule (MJ) yield of neutron energy at its National Ignition Facility (NIF). AWE welcomes this very significant achievement, a scientific first. Such high energy ignited plasmas are a very valuable tool in the process of underwriting nuclear […]

As part of its ongoing commitment to support local charities, AWE’s charity partner Thrive has received an AWE Charity Fund donation to help its client gardeners flourish at the weekly sessions. This is the third year that Thrive, one of the leading gardening for health charities, has been AWE’s charity partner. Throughout this time, AWE […]

The summer edition of AWE’s community newsletter is out now. This latest issue throws the spotlight on our Local Liaison Committee and how it serves as an important link between AWE and the local community. There’s also a round-up of AWE news plus our work with education and charity partners. Click here for the latest […]

 A legacy of innovation Since its beginnings, AWE has been synonymous with innovation in defence. We have pioneered advanced capabilities, facilities, and cutting-edge research for UK’s nuclear deterrence programme. Recently, we commissioned a new supercomputer called Damson, capable of performing 4.3 million billion calculations per second. Orion, one of the largest lasers in the world, […]

AWE Blacknest is home to AWE’s Forensic Seismology team. Here, techniques are developed to distinguish seismic signals generated by underground nuclear explosions from those generated by earthquakes. This work is pivotal to the UK’s verification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), which bans any nuclear weapons test explosion or any other nuclear explosion. This year, […]