According to Savills, take-up of science related real estate across the golden triangle of London, Oxford and Cambridge totalled 1.35 million sq ft in 2025, a 42% increase on 2024’s figure of 954,000 sq ft. This is despite ongoing macro-economic challenges contributing to a weaker funding market and consequently impacting occupier demand for laboratory space.
Looking at individual markets, Oxford saw take-up increase by 61% last year reaching 716,506 sq ft, 84% of which was for lab space. This can largely be attributed to the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) taking 450,000 sq ft of speculative lab space at The Daubeny Buildings, Oxford Science Park, which signals considerable investment from key global players into the city.
Cambridge also saw an uptick with take-up totalling 436,661 sq ft, 28% above 2024’s total. Whilst only 76,000 sq ft of this was for lab space and the figure remains below the long-term average of 540,000 sq ft, 2026 could see a stronger start with 53,000 sq ft already under offer. This includes Astex Pharmaceuticals, which is said to be close to agreeing a pre-let of up to 90,000 sq ft at one of the city’s science parks.
In London, take-up reached 203,000 sq ft, a 19% jump on 2024. What’s more, Savills notes that 48% of this was for lab space as a number of key schemes reached practical completion in the capital. This includes, 1 Triton Square at Regent’s Place, Refinery at ARC West London, Victoria House and Apex at Tribeca. The largest deal of 2025 saw LifeArc, advised by Savills, pre-let 70,000 sq ft at Ashby Capital and Native Land’s Kova KX in King’s Cross. There is also a further 95,000 sq ft under offer as of January 2026, signalling a positive start to the year.
In terms of supply, there is significant pipeline set to be delivered in 2026 totalling 1.1 million sq ft across the golden triangle. In many places this will be the first time purpose built high quality lab space is available giving occupiers a much better choice. It will also create more competition between landlords in some locations in the short to medium term, but with a limited pipeline beyond this year and growing demand from many emerging sectors, a more balanced market could return relatively quickly.
From a venture capital (VC) perspective, Savills has seen traditional life science companies continue to suffer from a weaker funding market, with a 19% fall in VC this year overall for the sector. As a result, Savills has seen smaller companies restrict their space requirements. Investment has, instead, diverted to emerging science and technology with AI at the forefront. In fact, data generated by Savills from PitchBook shows that funding into various software sub-sectors, primarily connected to AI, increased by 52% last year, to £8.3 billion, following a 33% rise in 2024.
Tom Mellows, head of UK science at Savills, comments: “2025 was characterised by tough economic and geo-political conditions which continue to create caution amongst investors and occupiers alike. This has particularly impacted the more traditional life science sector and, subsequently, take-up of lab space by smaller VC funded companies. However, we have seen growing positivity across the market. For example, EIT’s expansion in Oxford, discoveries in cell & gene therapy making headlines, as well as resolutions around the Government’s Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access, and Growth (VPAG) and tariffs should all see larger requirements return to the UK. In addition, emerging sectors such as quantum computing, materials and AI will continue to fuel demand leading to greater levels of activity in 2026.”