●     New report urges policymakers to streamline planning to support the growth of the Golden Triangle’s knowledge economies

●     UK life sciences sector, which supports a quarter of a million jobs, has a critical mass in the Golden Triangle

●     Sector has the ability to preserve and create highly skilled employment opportunities post-crisis

A life sciences super-cluster across the Golden Triangle between Oxford, Cambridge and London could help power Britain’s economic recovery from Covid-19 says a major report from New London Architecture (NLA) published today.

 

The Chancellor’s forthcoming emergency budget should look to speed up the delivery of vital lab space, housing and other infrastructure that can attract talent and ensure fast-growing spinouts can remain in Britain rather than relocate to Boston or other major science hubs. 

 

The UK’s life sciences sector has a critical mass in the knowledge economies of London, Oxford and Cambridge. But rising house prices and rents are threatening to price out talent and the businesses who spin-out of the UK’s leading higher education institutes that reside in the region.

 

NLA’s report, Knowledge Networks: London and the Ox-Cam Arc, calls for the government to streamline planning to speed up development in the region and enable the creation of a U.S-style supercluster in the Golden Triangle.

 

The UK’s life sciences sector, which contributes £74 billion to the UK economy annually and supports 250,000 jobs, has played a central role in the UK’s economic response to Covid-19. Its ability to preserve and create employment, export innovation globally and lead on the development of a vaccine has meant it has come under the spotlight more than ever - all for the right reasons.

 

British universities are now more open to partnerships with the commercial world than in previous decades, aware as they are of the need to commercialise their research discoveries. The Golden Triangle is home to the UK’s leading research institutions at Imperial College London, University College London, King’s College, University of Oxford and Cambridge University.

 

In addition, the UK government is increasing its current level of research and development expenditure from 1.7 percent of GDP to 2.4 percent over the next five years, equivalent to £22bn. Private sector investment will be crucial in leveraging this.

 

Supply and demand imbalances, both in terms of housing and workspace, have seen prices rapidly rise in the UK’s hub of biomedical, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. London, Oxford and Cambridge are three of the least affordable cities to live in in the UK, with average house prices well over 100 percent more than the national average.

 

High levels of commercial take up has also left companies in the Golden Triangle vying for limited space, helping to drive up rents. In the last five years, commercial rents in Oxford and Cambridge have skyrocketed by 32 percent and 28 percent respectively. 

 

In order to future-proof the success of this region, the NLA, alongside Bidwells, a property consultancy focused on the Golden Triangle, architects Perkins and Will and Penoyre & Prasad, and mixed-used developer Stanhope, are calling for more integrated city–regional planning, and a stronger emphasis on presenting the Golden Triangle as a coordinated international brand on the world-stage and viewing it ‘in system terms’.

 

In spatial terms this means providing the right balance and mix of housing, start-up, grow-on, industrial and corporate space across the region as a whole, so that researchers and entrepreneurs can easily identify their next opportunity and continue to attract top-tier talent.

 

Ensuring suitable housing, workspace and infrastructure is delivered in the region, where economic output rose by 5.4 percent over the five years to 2018 according to Bidwells, will help future-proof the UK economy.

 

Peter Murray, Curator-in-chief, NLA, said: “The knowledge economy will be vital for the UK economy as we come out of the current pandemic – it is essential that we have a coherent regional plan that encourages collaboration between key centres and ensures we have the accommodation the sector requires.”

 

Mike Derbyshire, head of planning at Bidwells, said:“Life sciences need to be at the heart of Britain's recovery story. Creating a cluster across the Golden Triangle to rival the "other" Cambridge - in Massachusetts - is vital. We already have our own hub of pharma and biotech innovators alongside world-leading universities and research institutions. But to properly capture potential growth, create jobs and ensure we can level up areas outside of London, firms need space to grow and the worlds of academia and research need the private sector to be able to build clusters around big thinking spinouts from the likes of Imperial, Oxford and Cambridge universities.

 

Steven Charlton, managing director at Perkins and Will, said:“Covid-19 has brought life sciences to the fore and by learning some of the lessons from how the U.S. has created innovation districts and clusters - centred around research and academia - we can drive both the economy and our health. 

 

"Britain has to be more bold and ministers need to recognise that companies cannot currently expand here, they will either head to Boston or to the Far East. A post-pandemic recovery will strongly rely on innovation in science, technology and healthcare and one of the fast-emerging trends is how AI will disrupt all three. We need to design campuses and towns that can firstly accommodate the growth potential of spinout companies - but also attract highly-skilled workers by being decent places to live.”

 

Peter Baird, associate at Perkins and Will, added: “If the Government wants to make a quick impact and support the knowledge economy, it needs to take radical steps and demonstrate to the science and technology community that it is willing to help deliver the facilities companies need to innovate and grow.”

 

Ian Goodfellow, principal at Penoyre & Prasad, said: "To compete on a global canvas and mimic some of the superclusters we see across the U.S. and China, investors need greater planning certainty and we need to amplify our use of data to help inform decision-making.

 

“At the heart of innovation districts are anchor tenants – such as academics or major tech firms – but their success depends on great transport links and a focus on sustainable development. Silicon Valley for example, where the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority runs bus and light rail services that reach every corner of the tech hub with standard one-way fares costing as little as $2. The Arc must strive to replicate such successes.

 

Philip Cambell, commercial director at Milton Park, a science and tech business park in Oxfordshire, added:"The desire for firms to cluster together and the lack of new development within the centres of Oxford and Cambridge gives us all a fantastic opportunity to reimagine existing business parks and reinvent them for an innovative age of live-work-play. We undertook extensive research and stakeholder engagement in creating our 2040 Vision masterplan for Milton Park which encompasses significant spaces for wellbeing and leisure, recognising that the real value to talented employees often comes through unintended meetings and random conversations over a coffee. We need to continue to enhance our community both with grade A workspace and the wider environments that can encourage more sustainable living."

 

Linn Cladbburn, programme director at Cambridge Norwich Tech Corridor, a non-profit economic growth initiative for East Anglia, added:“The halo effect from Oxford’s and Cambridge's legacy of innovation extends far beyond the walls of their historic universities, and the potential to grow a science and tech cluster that links in with the world-leading research institutions at Norwich Research Park and the University of East Anglia is significant. At the Cambridge Norwich Tech Corridor, we’re committed to creating a top-tier destination for the best tech talent from around the world. This will require significant investment in hard and soft infrastructure and a strategic focus that recognises that unless we look to create a genuine, resilient, super-cluster, a once-in-a-generation opportunity will be missed."

 

Charles Walford, property director at Stanhope, said: "There is a fundamental shortage of labs and other commercial space for life sciences firms and this is holding back growth. Development is a complex and costly process with multiple additional considerations compared with regular offices or apartments. But there is significant patient capital willing to invest as we recognise the significant long-term value in doing so. Ministers clearly recognise the growing value of a thriving life sciences sector and of being able to support high-growth businesses spinning out from our leading universities.”

Knowledge Networks: London and the Ox-Cam Arc explores the growth in knowledge-intensive industries across London, Oxford and Cambridge, known as the ‘Golden Triangle’, and examines how the knowledge economy can be strengthened across this region. The project showcase presents over 90 exemplary projects and schemes having a transformational impact on the education, healthcare, technology and innovation sectors in the UK.

For further images, information, or interviews please contact: Ilaria Vignolo ilaria.vignolo@newlondonarchitecture.org

16 June, 10-11am, Zoom
Free
Hear from industry leaders about how to future-proof the needs for the knowledge economy sector within the Golden Triangle.