Record quarterly science and innovation take-up in Cambridge

Cambridge recorded 166,689 sq ft of take-up in Q1 2026, its strongest quarter on record and more than 200% above the five-year quarterly average of 55,267 sq ft.

While total Q1 Golden Triangle science and innovation take-up lagged the exceptional 610,350 sq ft recorded in Q4 2025 – a period skewed by the Ellison Institute transactions at Oxford Science Park – the underlying picture showcases continued demand for suitable lab and office space across the Golden Triangle.

Standout deals:

The quarter was anchored by Cambridge Aerospace's 81,528 sq ft letting at Bourne Quarter and Bruntwood SciTech's 41,000 sq ft letting of the Da Vinci Building at Melbourn Science Park to Cellular Origins for its new global headquarters. A further 36,597 sq ft deal with 4 Base Bio at Q-Arc, Cambridge Science Park, completed the trio of larger transactions.

London science and innovation take-up totalled 22,100 sq ft across five deals after a blank Q4 2025. The pipeline is building: 85,600 sq ft of space is already under offer and 145,000 sq ft of active lab and office requirements are live in the market, a positive indicator for leasing volumes for the remainder of the year.

Outside of lab space, the science and innovation economy is driving material office demand in the capital. Databricks pre-let the entire 136,300 sq ft of offices at Network W1, while Gilead Sciences has taken 50,000 sq ft of offices at British Land and RLAM’s 1 Triton Square. AI take-up in London totalled 313,000 sq ft in Q1. Momentum has carried into Q2, with around 250,000 sq ft already signed following April deals by OpenAI and Anthropic. This means year‑to‑date activity has already surpassed the full‑year total for 2025, with more than 600,000 sq ft of active AI‑led demand pointing to the potential for 1 million sq ft of take‑up by year‑end.

Oxford registered 45,990 sq ft of leasing across four deals. While this was down 91.4% on Q4 2025's outlier total, the quarter showed a 58.3% increase compared to the previous quarter after stripping out the Ellison Institute transactions from that period.

Development:

The Golden Triangle’s development pipeline – comprising projects under construction and due to complete by 2028 – totals 3,685,984 sq ft, with delivery heavily front-loaded: 42.9% is forecast to be delivered in 2026, 29.6% in 2027 and 27.5% in 2028. London leads with 45.4% of the total, ahead of Oxford (31.1%) and Cambridge (23.5%).

Q1 2026 saw several key schemes complete across the region, including Trinity by Breakthrough in Oxford, which offers 215,000 sq ft of lab and office space across one of the most sustainable life sciences facilities in the region.

Planning activity was similarly robust: King's College London and Pioneer Group secured consent to transform a Grade II-listed former medical school on the Guy's and St Thomas' campus into a 176,528 sq ft lab and office scheme, while proposals were lodged for the 1m sq ft Whitechapel Healthcare and Research Campus, a £750m joint venture between BGO and Barts Health NHS Trust within the Barts Life Sciences Cluster.

Wider market indicators:

UK life sciences venture capital funding totalled £753.7m across 136 completed deals in Q1 2026, with the Golden Triangle capturing 72% of deal value. The continued convergence of life sciences and AI was reflected in the fact that AI and machine learning companies featured in 41.2% of life sciences deals,

Nonetheless, the active UK life sciences company count fell to 17,616 in Q1 2026, a net loss of 89 businesses compared with Q4 2025. This serves as a reminder that the operating backdrop for earlier-stage tenants remains demanding.

The Chancellor's Mais Lecture delivered more than £6bn of commitments spanning quantum, AI and regional growth, including a £2bn quantum package anchored by the £1bn ProQure procurement programme, a £500m Sovereign AI Fund, and a doubling of Oxford–Cambridge corridor investment to £800m. The UK has also secured zero tariffs on pharmaceutical and MedTech exports to the United States for at least three years.

Jennifer Townsend, Partner, Insights – Life Science and Innovation at Knight Frank, commented: "The Q1 data sits in two registers. Biopharma sentiment is improving and leasing activity held up over the quarter, but a decline in active company numbers and continued restructuring among larger occupiers suggest the sector is still moving through a cyclical adjustment. Supporting the medium-term outlook, however, are drivers that include a strong academic base, investment in AI, and a clearer policy commitment”.

Nicholas Blevins, Head of Life Sciences and Innovation at Knight Frank, added: “Occupiers are prioritising cost and flexibility, taking advantage of the current supply dynamic to secure the space they need for their critical operations while a focus on outsourcing remains. Looking forward, the operational and funding environment continues to pose challenges for most science and innovation businesses. With that said, the raft of new funding measures announced in Q1 and a more positive UK-US trade outlook should help to pave the way for high-performing UK science and innovation businesses to enjoy sustained success.”