COMMENT Science and technology have burst into the real estate mainstream in the past three years – but the principles of good development apply to the sector’s new poster child as much as any other asset class.
Everything that science and technology has in its favour – a sophisticated customer base, strong demand and government support – has to be underpinned by the quality and provision of the commercial real estate it occupies.
In the UK, first the financial services sector and next the tech sector have been turbo-charged in their growth through great workplaces that have enabled their teams to collaborate and thrive. And there is no reason why the property industry cannot support the rapid growth of science and technology as well.
Lessons from Broadgate
At British Land, we know through our campus approach to mixed-use development what a difference this makes. The transformation of Broadgate in the City of London over the past five years has seen us attract a far wider range of businesses from the tech and fintech sectors.
These companies often started in smaller, cramped offices on the City fringe but as they grew and matured, their teams wanted to work in a more collaborative space in a mixed-use setting. This upgrade in workspace also makes it easier to hire and retain staff, as well as improve morale and productivity.
We adopt a number of key principles when designing and building our real estate. The first is ensuring that we build the right space for the customer and their employees. That applies not only to the specifications and quality of the product but its sustainability credentials and provision of outside spaces – the new 1.5-acre park at Exchange Square at Broadgate is a great example of this.
The second is how you create the physical connections to make places work effectively, in addition to building the environment and infrastructure for people and organisations to make connections and work well.
And the third is that careful consideration needs to be given to the curation of places. You can’t just throw customers together without thinking of the right mix of businesses, leasing price points and space for them to grow. Equally, the provision of the right amenities, from gyms to cafés, is key.
And finally, looking at how developments interface with the surrounding community is all-important. After all, people will be travelling to work from those neighbourhoods and will not welcome a red line around it.
Arc-bound
There are specific issues in the Oxford-Cambridge Arc which will make turbo-charging science and technology a whole new challenge.
When any real estate sector sees a growth spurt, housing is the important need to satisfy, both in terms of volume and affordability.
The planning backdrop in the Arc is different from central London given the plethora of different planning authorities and agencies in the area, with local plans at different stages in different places.
There isn’t a single labour market catchment for the Arc. Whereas the City of London draws commuters particularly strongly from the north, east and south of London, journeys to the Arc are more disparate and complex, putting pressure on housing in some areas.
Perhaps the biggest long-term challenge for the growth of science and technology in the Oxford-Cambridge Arc will be unlocking more land, allowing development at higher densities and creating new transport hubs which connect with existing infrastructure.
But all these challenges can be overcome. After all, if the science and tech world can create Covid vaccines in less than a year, the UK’s public and private sectors should be determined to continue to facilitate this growth.
At British Land we believe in a place-based approach to development which rests on public-private collaboration, integrated services and encouraging innovation, whether that is in transport infrastructure, planning, economic growth, sustainability or housing.
We fully embrace the importance of developing strong local relationships which allow us to adapt to emerging needs and opportunities at each place to make the biggest impact.
Local priorities
As a developer, we can’t just turn up in a city, town or neighbourhood and develop new space without working with the communities to ensure the overall effect is a considerable improvement.
We focus on helping to solve local priority issues, working to improve education with partners like the National Literacy Trust, supporting employment through training, helping local businesses and enhancing wellbeing.
Our place-based approach is a principle we are applying in partnership with Southwark Council at the UK’s biggest net zero development, Canada Water.
There is no reason why the best of the UK’s real estate, architecture, planning and construction worlds cannot collaborate to deliver the same radical rejuvenation focused on science and technology in the Oxford-Cambridge Arc.
David Lockyer is head of campuses at British Land
