Birmingham is fast catching up with the Ox-Cam Arc when it comes to life sciences demand, according to new rental research.
Findings from Carter Jonas, shared exclusively with EG, show that rents for life sciences cluster locations in Birmingham reached £50 per sq ft in 2022, less than 10% off the rents achieved in Golden Triangle locations Oxford and Cambridge.
Rents at science parks in Oxfordshire rose to an average of £55 per sq ft in 2022, up from £45 in the previous year. In city centre locations, rents were £49.50 per sq ft, compared with £38.50 in 2021.
Prices for life sciences locations in Cambridge city centre increased to £55 per sq ft, up from £48.50, while the equivalent average for out-of-town locations increased to £37.50, compared with £36 in the previous year.
Life sciences rents were highest in London, averaging £95 per sq ft.
Researchers at Carter Jonas said a lack of available stock, rising construction costs and continued demand would put “upward pressure on rental levels over the coming year”.
Matt Lee, head of science and technology at Carter Jones, said: “Although we expect the most advanced markets, such as London, Cambridge and Oxford, to accelerate faster, other established clusters like Manchester, Birmingham, Newcastle, Liverpool and Leeds are also anticipated to draw both investors and occupiers.
“A growing number of regional cities are advancing proposals, including Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle, and are expected to continue strengthening the sector through 2023.”
However, in terms of investment into life sciences locations, the gap between the Golden Triangle markets and the regions has widened.
Carter Jonas estimated that Oxford, Cambridge and London together accounted for 95% of a total $6bn (£4.9bn) of investment, with London life sciences clusters alone securing $3.6bn of capital inflows in 2022.
In the regions, life sciences investment funding was highest in Manchester, with $92.8m secured over the past year, followed by Leeds at $50.4m. Birmingham recorded just $4.7m of investment in 2022.
Lee said: “As an emerging cluster, there are fewer companies than in some of the more established locations like Oxford, Cambridge and London, meaning that we see less investment. As these clusters grow, in turn we would expect these investment figures to increase as a percentage.”
Carter Jonas said it expected life sciences businesses of all sizes to continue growing their presence across the UK’s lab-ready buildings, including start-ups.
A time lag is predicted for new-build research and development space to hit the market in the Golden Triangle. At the same time, regional life sciences take-up looks set to pick up pace.
The biggest life sciences projects include Arc Harwell in Oxfordshire, Citylabs 4.0 in Manchester and the Birmingham Health Innovation Campus.
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