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After two challenging years, the UK’s life sciences sector is starting to show signs of life once more. Whether it be strong demand from global pharma in London, Cambridge and Oxford, the increasing levels of venture capital (VC) money being raised, the Mansion House reforms, the government’s commitment to the Oxford-Cambridge Growth Corridor or the new R&D funding budgets, there’s plenty reason to be positive as we enter the final six months of 2025.

Taking each in turn, how certain can we be that the latest money raised and government interventions can be the much-needed boon to the sector.

Whilst VC funding is unlikely to return to the record levels seen in 2021 and 2022, in the first quarter of 2025, UK life sciences companies secured £1.1bn in VC funding, marking the highest quarterly total since Q2 2021 and a 36% increase on Q4’24. VC capital raising will be further supported by an improving macro-economic outlook, with central banks around the world now on an easing path with falling inflation, a moderately improving growth outlook and an increasing appetite for ‘risk’ from institutional investors. The correlation between VC funding and demand for lab space is well-established and we anticipate this latest round of fund raises will result in an uptick in occupier demand over the remainder of 2025 and into H1’26.

Furthermore, the life sciences sector is one of eight growth sectors that the government has identified to form part of the new ten-year industrial strategy. When sat alongside the Mansion House reforms (aiming to unlock pension fund capital for high-growth sectors like life sciences) and the ambitions set out by government for the Oxford-Cambridge corridor, this means that significant amounts of capital, both private and public, is being directed at the sector, which will only help enable further growth of life sciences in the UK, but particularly in the ‘Golden Triangle’, with its globally leading academic institutions, deep talent pool and IP ideation.

Other opportunities could lie in drug discovery emanating out of the US, as Trump, his departmental funding, tariffs and choice of personnel, such as Robert F. Kennedy, may make it more appealing for early-stage life science business to venture outside of the world’s biggest life science centre. If that theory holds, then the UK is well placed to benefit from any disruption. Albeit the recent development by Trump to issue ‘stop notices’ on a number of US research grants at UK universities, is a worrying development, with five universities, Durham, Leeds, Liverpool, Nottingham and Southampton all being directly affected.

However, there’s enough reasons to suggest that demand in the sector will improve from here on. The post-Covid slump that the sector endured was not unique to life sciences, but having emerged from the other side, the sector is well-established, with plenty money both targeting and within it currently, to suggest that demand from varied occupiers from the worlds of drug discovery to neurology to oncology, will drive a resurgence in the occupier, and vis-à-vis, capital markets, from this point on.

Lab take-up in London reached 114,900 sq ft in H1 2025, the highest level since the peak of 2022. This represents a 36% increase on the five-year full-year average and is eleven times take-up at the same point last year, marking an encouraging sign of renewed momentum in the market.

The majority of this activity was driven by LifeArc’s lease of 70,600 sq ft at Ashby Capital and Native Land’s KOVA KX at 105 Judd Street, accounting for 61% of total take-up. Additional take-up included new deals at Pioneer’s incubator space in Victoria House, expansion by Relation Therapeutics at British Land’s 338 Euston Road, and Helios X taking space at QMB’s Innovation Centre.

82% of the total take-up by area took place in King’s Cross’ Knowledge Quarter, highlighting the continuing appeal of this cluster, driven by its prime location, skilled talent pool, international occupiers and strong academic links.

Looking ahead, 67,100 sq ft of lab space was under offer at the close of the quarter, with Eli Lilly under offer on 35,000 sq ft at Blackrock and Reef’s Apex, Tribeca, continued activity within LBIC’s space at the same site and additional space under offer at Kadans’ Mayde, 5-10 Brandon Road, King’s Cross.

Venture capital investment has also surged in 2025, with £1.3 billion raised by London-headquartered science and tech companies in H1, more than triple the amount secured during the same period last year. This puts London far ahead of its Golden Triangle peers, outpacing Cambridge and Oxford by £988 million and £1.1 billion respectively.

However, despite these positive indicators, challenges remain. Available lab supply has grown, with 453,600 sq ft of built but vacant space now on the market. This marks an 80% increase compared to H1 2024, largely due to the first wave of new purpose-built lab completions over the past year.

There is also a considerable 2.4 million sq ft of lab-led space currently under construction, with 57% located in the Knowledge Quarter. The remainder is concentrated in Canary Wharf, where considerable progress continues at Kadans and Canary Wharf Group’s One North Quay and GIC and Oaktree’s 17CC LABS.

Following a subdued start to the year, Q2 saw an additional 26,900 sq ft of lab and mid-tech space transacted in Cambridge, bringing total H1 take-up to 49,500 sq ft. While this figure is 22% down year-on-year and 15% below the half-year average of the past five years, occupier activity in Q2 is pointing towards a more positive second half of the year.

A standout deal in the quarter was Frontier IP’s strategic partnership with Abstract Securities, securing 18,000 sq ft at the newly completed, best-in-class, South Cambridge Science Centre. This collaboration will establish a new innovation hub dedicated to early-stage science and tech businesses and marks an exciting step forward for both Frontier IP and the broader Cambridge ecosystem. Notably, this was the only transaction over 10,000 sq ft recorded  in 2025.

Additional market activity in Q2 included Maxion Therapeutics completing a surrender and regrant of 8,900 sq ft at Unity Campus. At the end of the quarter, a further 12,700 sq ft was under offer, helping towards ongoing deal momentum in Q3.

On the demand side, DTRE were tracking 293,500 sq ft of active requirements in Cambridge at the end of June, with a further 350,000 sq ft of named demand either upcoming or temporarily on hold. Encouragingly, this includes two major enquiries of over 50,000 sq ft, although the majority of demand remains focused on smaller footprints.

Over the past 12 months, a significant volume of new space has been delivered, including BioMed’s One Granta at Granta Park and Abstract’s South Cambridge Science Centre in Sawston. With new completions outpacing take-up, up-and-built availability has increased sharply to 417,500 sq ft, nearly triple the 151,000 sq ft available at the same point last year.

Despite the short-term slowdown in leasing and jump in availability, there are reasons for cautious optimism. Venture capital raised by Cambridge-headquartered science and tech companies tripled year-on-year, reaching £319 million in H1 2025, up from £119 million in the same period in 2024. This injection of capital is a positive indicator for the months ahead and will help in reducing the lag between investment and take-up.

Following a strong start to the year, with 44,100 sq ft transacted in Q1, a further 22,700 sq ft was let in Q2, bringing the H1 total to 66,800 sq ft. While encouraging, this figure is still trailing behind the five-year annual average of 200,300 sq ft.

Notable lettings in Q2 included Oxford Expression Technologies securing 5,500 sq ft at Life Science REIT’s Oxford Technology Park, new leases at the Schrodinger Building in Magdalen College and GIC’s Oxford Science Park, and Alethiomics taking 4,400 sq ft at Kadans’ Abingdon Science Park. 

Demand in Oxford remains robust, with total named requirements reaching 642,200 sq ft by the end of June, a 42% increase compared to the same period last year. Of this, active demand currently stands at 286,500 sq ft, representing a 36% of all active demand across the Golden Triangle and reflecting sustained interest in the region. This active demand is dominated by larger requirements, such as Vertex (90,000 sq ft), that emerged at the close of last year, alongside three requirements in the 10,000 to 20,000 sq ft bracket coming to market this year. Despite a positive number of larger requirements, the market remains dominated by the smaller size bracket, with 50% of total named requirements, by count, being for space less than 10,000 sq ft.

Oxford’s current supply remains constrained at 282,900 sq ft. Unlike Cambridge and London, Oxford has so far avoided a surge in new completions hitting the market simultaneously. That said, the picture is set to change in the second half of the year, with 421,000 sq ft of new lab-led space scheduled for delivery. This includes the first phase of Oxford North, new space at ARC’s Harwell Science & Innovation Campus, and Breakthrough Properties’ Trinity House at the entrance of Oxford Business Park. With a current vacancy rate of 14%, the market is expected to see a sharp rise in availability unless take-up accelerates.

Science & Technology Report:
Golden Triangle - Q2 2025

Science & Technology Report: Golden Triangle - Q2 2025

5 Things You Need to Know About Big Box Logistics in Q2 2025

Data to suit any narrative is very much the theme of the UK’s Big Box logistics market at the moment. The first six months of 2025 have been positive from a demand perspective, with take-up volumes in excess of pre-Covid averages at 13.1m sq ft and a significant number of deals ‘under offer’. On the flip-side, the vacancy rate has crept higher to 7.4% from 7.2% at the turn of the year and there are now c.59m sq ft of vacant units dotted across the UK, however, the vast majority of these are second-hand.

Take-up of ‘Big Boxes’ (units of 100,000 sq ft plus) has reached 13.1m sq ft at the end of H1, ahead of the long run pre-covid average (2007-19) for the half year (12.33m). Indeed, in the month of May we saw 3.2m sq ft of take-up of ‘standing stock’ (i.e. excluding pre-lets/Design & build), which represents the best month for take-up of up and built units in over three years. 

In addition, there are currently forty-four (44) Big Box units currently under offer, totalling 13.2m sq ft. If all of those units were to complete in the next six months then take-up by the year end will reach c.26 million sq ft, 7% ahead of the pre-Covid annual average.

Furthermore, we remain unaware of any recent deals that have stalled due to the introduction of tariffs by the US. Indeed, there are examples, particularly of Chinese e-commerce and 3PLs taking space in the UK in anticipation of tariff disruption, which has aided take-up numbers.

One area of demand that has fallen away this year is for pre-lets and design and build units. DTRE have only recorded 1.9m sq ft of design and build transactions so far this year. That’s down significantly on the 4.4m sq ft we witnessed by the same point in 2024 and the lowest volume of design and build deals since 2011. The biggest deals have been for standing stock (GXO taking Panattoni’s Avonmouth 885 scheme and ID Logistics acquiring Sherburn550) and encouragingly we witnessed 19 deals for units between 100-200,000 sq ft in Q2, that’s 26% up on the pre-Covid long-run average and demonstrates a depth and confidence to the SME’s underpinning the sector.

In terms of supply and vacancy, the DTRE Big Box Vacancy Rate has risen slightly over the last 6 months to 7.4% today from 7.2% at the end of Q4’24.  There is currently 58.9 million sq ft of vacant units across the UK, with the Midlands accounting for 41% of that total. The majority of the currently available supply (62%) is second-hand with 22.4 m sq ft of vacant ‘new spec built’ units on the market also. However, with only 4.2 million sq ft of additional ‘New/Spec-built’ units coming online this year, we continue to predict falling supply by Q4 ’25, even at average levels of occupier demand.

Despite the rising supply, rental growth is still being witnessed, albeit certain markets are now moving at different speeds. Rental growth data from MSCI suggests that you continue to see rental growth as long as the vacancy rate remains below 10% (see Fig 2). Therefore, despite the current level of vacancy, annualised rental growth for distribution warehouses in the year to end May was 4.6%, still well ahead of offices (2.2%) and retail (1.9%) and with the vacancy rate forecasted to start to fall by Q4, we expect rental growth to remain robust, particularly for prime.

Moving through the final six months of 2025, whilst the tailwinds of e-commerce have faded from what they were they remain structurally high and a key driver to the sector. When allied with the restructuring of supply chains by the UK’s leading grocery retailers, as well as the reshoring, near-shoring and friend-shoring phenomenon that is taking place in retail (and to a lesser extent manufacturing) and the additional defence spending announced by the government, this all points towards robust levels of occupier demand in the short, medium and longer term.

In similar vein to the leasing market, you can find data to suit any narrative within the capital markets, as we tick past the half year. Across the entire industrial and logistics landscape for both single and multi-lets just over £2.2bn has traded in Q2, taking the H1 total to £3.3bn, and 17% ahead of the quarterly average seen since the Truss/Kwarteng Budget of Q3’22. In a reversal of recent times, big ticket ‘Big Box’ portfolios and logistics parks of c.£100m plus have driven the market, as the ability to aggregate and drive returns through active asset management have become the preferred strategies for investors.

On the flipside, a lack of forced sellers, the dialling back of rental growth assumptions and a lack of willingness to underpin exit yields at anything below 5%, means the single and multi-let markets between c.£20-50m remain relatively hamstrung, with vendor and purchaser aspirations relatively far apart. The result being that deal-making has moved to either end of the barbell. Portfolios and single-ownership logistics parks suitable for aggregation and asset management strategies, and smaller lot sizes with lower risk and access to reversion, seeing the most activity in Q2 and we expect this to continue in Q3 and Q4.

The biggest deal in the quarter saw LondonMetric acquire Urban Logistics REIT for £699m, which accounted for 28% of the total volume traded in Q2. A number of other portfolios also traded, with Barings acquiring the Access portfolio from Blackstone for £145.5m and Greykite purchasing the Aurora portfolio from Logicor for £245m. Whilst in the listed space the battle for Warehouse REIT at c.£490m shows the eagerness of investors, namely Tritax and Blackstone in this case, to take advantage of the perceived discount. In terms of single-let assets trading, LondonMetric have forward funded a new M&S warehouse in Bristol to the tune of £74m/5.7% but outside of that relatively little has transacted.

Moving through the remaining six months of the year factors outside of real estate fundamentals will continue to influence the capital markets. Downside risks to deal volume and pricing come most notably from Rachel Reeves and her fiscal rules, which will be exposed in her Autumn Budget and will come at the end of October/start of November.  Investors have become increasingly sensitive to UK fiscal policy and if Labour are unable to convince the bond market that they can balance the books, then bond investors will demand higher yields to compensate for the perceived fiscal risk. The result being UK gilt yields would move out, at or just above 5%, with a subsequent knock-on effect to property pricing.

Alternatively, there are also several factors that should be exerting downward pressure on UK bond yields, should fiscal worries be allayed – including falling inflation in the US and UK by Q4, and further rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England. If the Bank of England can cut interest rates a further two times this year, as the market expects, then this will help reduce borrowing costs and 5-year swaps should move closer to 3.5%, if not dip below, potentially helping bridge the purchaser/vendor mismatch.

However, if the BoE cut any further than two more times, that would signal an underlying weakness to the UK economy that would present different challenges, even if financing rates became more accretive to deals. 



DTRE Big Box Logistics
Report - Q2 2025

DTRE Big Box Logistics Report - Q2 2025

Laboratory and mid-tech take-up in Cambridge reached 22,600 sq ft across five deals during Q1 2025. The largest transactions of the quarter included Advent Bioservices taking two leases on the ground floor at Howard Group’s Cadence, Unity Campus, totalling 8,400 sq ft, while Orion Corporation secured 7,100 sq ft at the Bennet Building, Babraham Research Campus.

Although take-up was subdued, down 48% compared to Q1 2024, it remains in line with the average quarterly take-up recorded last year of 22,900 sq ft. Notably, 63,000 sq ft of laboratory and mid-tech space was under offer at the end of the quarter, providing reason for cautious optimism heading into Q2.

At the close of Q1, DTRE was tracking 639,000 sq ft of total demand, of which 317,000 sq ft was classed as active. While this figure is encouraging, a significant proportion of active demand is being driven by larger requirements, including Astex Therapeutics (90,000 sq ft) and Cellular Origins (60,000 sq ft), both advised by DTRE.

By way of supply, 231,300 sq ft of up-and-built laboratory space was available at the end of the quarter, with One Granta accounting for 34% of this total (79,700 sq ft).

No purpose-built laboratory reached practical completion in Cambridge in Q1; however shortly after the quarter’s end Phase 1 of Abstract’s South Cambridge Science Centre completed and brought 138,500 sq ft of best-in-class, highly flexible, and affordable lab space to the market. This transformative development offers purpose-built facilities designed specifically to meet the needs of the region’s growing life sciences ecosystem. Its location and specification position it as a premier destination for innovative companies seeking to establish or expand their presence in this globally significant research hub.

Q2 is expected to see the completion of Mission Street’s Phase 2 at The Press Foxton, delivering 64,400 sq ft to the market. We expect an additional 239,900 sq ft of space to complete later in the year at Longfellow’s CamLIFE, Brydell Partners’ First Step by Journey, and Churchman/Aviva’s Chesterford Research Park. Nevertheless, market sentiment remains cautious, with ongoing uncertainty in the wider economy continuing to weigh on occupier confidence, exacerbated by geopolitical developments such as the return of Trump.

Whilst the longer-term implications of his administrations policies are still being fully understood, we believe there are reasons to be optimistic as Trump’s shake-ups allow the UK to solidify its position at the forefront of global science and innovation and as a safe haven for a potential transatlantic scientific diaspora.

Venture capital funding into Cambridge-headquartered life sciences and biotech companies was subdued in Q1 2025. A total of £117 million was raised by 14 companies across 14 funding rounds. While this accounts for just 11% of total VC raised across the Golden Triangle, it represents a 6% increase on the previous quarter, and is on track to meet the pre-Covid 5-year average of £341 million raised per year.

Laboratory take-up in London totalled 20,200 sq ft in Q1 2025, with deals completed at Imperial’s I-HUB, Kadans’ MAYDE within Tileyard Quarter, and Life Science REIT’s Rolling Stock Yard. The quarter’s two largest transactions were at I-HUB, where MiNA Therapeutics took 7,200 sq ft and London Biofoundry signed for 5,800 sq ft. Additional activity included Epoch BioDesign taking space at Kadans’ MAYDE, while CFDX secured over 5,000 sq ft at Life Science REIT’s Rolling Stock Yard.

While London recorded the lowest take-up among the three Golden Triangle markets this quarter, it still reflects a promising start and is already 64% of the total recorded in 2024. Activity has doubled year-on-year (from 10,300 sq ft in Q1 2024) and was almost level with Cambridge in Q1, the most established science market.

With 139,300 sq ft of space under offer at the end of Q1, the market is well-positioned to exceed last year’s total by at least c.128,000 sq ft. Notable transactions still under offer include LifeArc for 70,000 sq ft at Ashby Capitals KOVA KX, and global pharma company Eli Lilly on 35,000 sq ft at Blackrock and GIC’s Apex, Tribeca. Given the volume of space under offer, the outlook for the remainder of 2025 is increasingly positive.

By quarter-end, DTRE was tracking 242,800 sq ft of active demand in London, alongside a further 177,000 sq ft categorised as upcoming or currently on hold. Of the total demand, 70% is concentrated in and around the Knowledge Quarter, with West London accounting for a further 10% in line with the relative immaturity of the market, 69% of demand is for space under 10,000 sq ft.

Supply stood at 480,700 sq ft of up-and-built, available laboratory space at the end of Q1. This includes newly delivered space at Apex Tribeca (approximately 110,000 sq ft), 20 Triton Street (providing over 30,000 sq ft), and The Refinery at ARC West London which brings approximately 122,800 sq ft of new space to market and marks the completion of the first wave of purpose-built lab developments in the capital.

Looking ahead, 2.7 million sq ft of space is currently under construction across London. Approximately 1 million sq ft of this is currently under construction in Canary Wharf, at Kadans’ One North Quay, and LS Estates’ 17CC LABS.

Unlike the more cautious funding landscape in Cambridge and Oxford, venture capital activity in London was strong in Q1. Life science and biotech companies headquartered in the capital raised £752 million, accounting for 51% of the UK total, 73% of Golden Triangle fundraising, and a 305% increase quarter-on-quarter. This already equates to 64% of the total raised in 2024. With positive momentum continuing into the year, there is hope that this will drive renewed confidence in the occupier market and reignite previously dormant requirements.

Oxford saw the highest take-up across the Golden Triangle markets in Q1 2025, reaching 44,100 sq ft. The largest transaction of the quarter occurred at The Oxford Science Park, where the Ellison Institute secured 25,500 sq ft at the Iversen Building, setting a new headline rent for fitted laboratory space. This milestone reflects strong momentum in the Oxford market and reinforces The Oxford Science Park’s prominent position within it.

A further 35,500 sq ft was under offer at the close of the quarter, with key space under offer at ARC’s Oxford Technology Park, Kadans’ Abingdon Science Park, and MEPC’s Nebula at Milton Park.

At the end of Q1, DTRE was tracking 652,200 sq ft of total demand, with 318,000 sq ft classed as active, representing a 15% decrease on the previous quarter. While active demand is down as uncertainty continues to weigh on the market, the interest by global pharma into Oxford is promising, with the likes of Vertex actively searching for 125,000 sq ft.

Available up-and-built laboratory space stood at 239,700 sq ft at quarter-end, with the majority of space available across Building One at the University of Oxford’s Begbroke Science Park (63,900 sq ft), Mission Street’s Inventa (38,400 sq ft) and across various buildings at ARC Oxford.

Although no new available laboratory developments were completed in the opening quarter, the delivery of Moderna’s Innovation and Technology Centre (MITC) at Harwell marked a major milestone. The 145,000 sq ft facility underscores Harwell’s growing significance and represents a positive step forward for the wider Oxford market, especially when considering the opportunities for global pharma companies in the UK.

Looking ahead, the completion of Buildings 1 and 2 at Oxford North is expected next quarter, which will provide a combined 115,000 sq ft of laboratory and office space, with Breakthrough’s completion of Trinity House (214,000 sq ft) anticipated towards the end of the year.

Venture capital activity in Oxford saw a moderate uptick in Q1, with life sciences and biotech companies raising £165 million, a 13% increase quarter-on-quarter and 58% above the average quarterly figure in 2024, signaling improving investor sentiment.

Science & Technology Report:
Golden Triangle - Q1 2025

Science & Technology Report: Golden Triangle - Q1 2025

5 Things You Need to Know About Big Box Logistics in Q1 2025

The Big Box occupational market has started the year on a stable footing, with quarterly take-up largely consistent since the beginning of the ‘post-Covid’ era (Q1 ’23). Q1 ’25 saw just over 6.3 m sq ft across twenty-seven (27) transactions. There are currently thirty (30) Big Box units currently under offer, totalling 9.4 m sq ft. Q2 should still see take-up in-line, if not above the ‘post-Covid’ quarterly average of 6.7 m sq ft if, as the domestically-focused nature of the majority of the space under offer is unlikely to be affected by ‘Trump’s Tariffs’. The knock-on effect of Trump’s tariff policy, and the business uncertainty created by it, is more likely to be seen in Q3’s numbers, and beyond, if left un-resolved.

Breaking down the data further, 63% of transactions were from the 100-200,000 size-band of supply, which is consistent with the long-term average of 59%. Encouragingly, the 300-400,000 sq ft range, saw 5 lettings, its most active quarter of the last 3 years. For context, this is equivalent to 55% of 2024’s annual total for the same size-band.

The 3PL’s remained the most active business sector and accounted for 52% of all the space let in the quarter, with nine separate deals totalling 3.3m sq ft. The much talked about manufacturing ‘boom’ is yet to materialise, at least in the Big Box market. There were 8 separate deals to manufacturers in Q1, marginally ahead of the 7 deals manufacturers have averaged in each quarter of the last 10 years. 

DTRE expects defence and aerospace players to be active players in the remainder of the year with the UK and EU’s increased defence spending likely to result in additional manufacturing and storage space being required and these types of businesses are increasingly appearing on requirement schedules.

Whilst it’s too early to call the winners and losers of Trump’s tariffs policy, the on-shoring, near-shoring and friend-shoring trends that emerged post-Covid, when supply chains were significantly disrupted, could become increasingly prevalent. The UK’s eagerness to do a trade deal with Trump’s team could attract businesses unable to locate in the US but still keen to avoid the worst of the tariff charges being levied on other countries. However, this hypothesis still has a way to play out, yet.

What has become more obvious is that the US’s removal of its duty-free de-minimis rule for goods from China and Hong Kong from the 2nd May will see retailers taking advantage of the UK’s de-minimis rule to sell stock previously bound for the US. A potential knock-on effect being additional warehousing requirements from 3PLs associated with Shein and Temu, in-particular.

Geographically there has been a wide variance in regions performing above and below their usual averages. We’ll await to see how this plays out in the remainder of the year but when looking at Greater London in-particular, there is now reasonable evidence to suggest that there has been a fundamental shift in the occupier base and affordability concerns have paralysed leasing deals of 100,000 sq ft plus.  In London, there has not been a deal of 100,000 sq ft plus in over 18 months, despite 15 vacant units currently on the market in the capital.

Elsewhere, however, 2025 has started positively. Yorkshire has recorded 9 deals in Q1, totalling 1.85 million sq ft. That’s Yorkshire’s best quarter ever in terms of number of deals, eclipsing the 8 deals it recorded in Q2 2020 and the 7 deals recorded in Q3 2010. Other regions performed much closer to historic averages, with the East Midlands remaining the dominant region in terms of deal volume, totalling 2.44 million sq ft (39% of total UK volume).

The DTRE Big Box Vacancy Rate has risen slightly over the last 3 months to 7.3% from 7.2% at the end of Q4’24. New, large, spec built, additions to the supply schedule include Logicor’s Derby 507 (507,503 sq ft) and S440 Panattoni Park Sittingbourne (439,228 sq ft) and there is now 21.33 million sq ft of ‘New/Speculatively-Built’ units on the market and a further 37.58 million sq ft of ‘Second-Hand’ units, with supply totalling 58.9 million sq ft. However, with only 8.2 million sq ft of additional ‘New/Spec-built’ units coming online this year, we predict falling supply by Q4 ’25, even at average levels of occupier demand.

Rental growth has remained positive through Q1 with 1.1% growth for industrial, according to MSCI (0.5% retail; 0.8% office), and some regions have seen new headline rents set. In the South West, C110 Indurent Park let at £10.50 per sq ft and IMI Thompson Valves took a pre-let at £12.50 per sq ft on 100,316 sq ft in Poole. In the North West, Sterling Group agreed a sub-lease of Unit 4, Icon at Manchester Airport from THG at £10.50 per sq ft, whilst frozen food grocer Iceland agreed to pay £8.75 per sq ft on 367,000 sq ft at Ergo Park Oldham, a 13% premium to the original quoting rent when the building reached practical completion in late 2022.

DTRE continue to forecast above inflation rental growth for the remainder of this year at 3.7% for Big Boxes, with double-digit rents for prime/Grade A units firmly established in the core regions of the Midlands and North West by the end of 2025. Albeit in some pockets of the UK incentive packages have moved out, particularly where landlords are in competition to secure tenants.

There certainly has been an improvement in investor sentiment at the start of 2025 and whilst that has yet to translate into any meaningful deal volume, with just three single-let deals of £30m plus in the quarter, from this point on DTRE anticipates volumes and deal flow to pick-up meaningfully, despite ‘Trump’s Tariffs’. The fundamentals of UK logistics real estate are not changed by ‘Trump’s Tariffs’, whilst sentiment could likely be damaged in the very short-term, the cyclical nature of real estate and the increasing likelihood of additional rate cuts by the Bank of England means the UK’s logistics real estate could well be one of the best spots for global capital to put its money to work.

Across the entire industrial and logistics landscape for both single and multi-let, only £1.1bn traded in Q1, down 43% on the average quarterly deal volume witnessed in 2024. The biggest deal saw Indurent purchase the Langtree & PGIM Portfolio for in the region of £200m. The biggest single-let deals saw Valor complete the purchase of a 627,000 sq ft Tesco unit in Thurrock for £127.7m. 

Other significant deals of the last three-months saw Tritax Big Box REIT purchase a 626,000 sq ft Sainsbury’s in Haydock, Merseyside from Mutual Finance for £74.25m/5.76% with a WAULT of 8-years and new-entrant Europi Property Group purchase a 243,000 sq ft unit at Port One logistics park in Ipswich which is let to Hampshire Freight Services for 15-years.


Other smaller deals to note include Tritax, through their TaSC fund acquiring a single-let Ocado unit in Leyton, Walthamstow, London from LondonMetric for £15m/4.72% and Crossbay purchasing a 64,000 sq ft unit let to Restore Datashred for a further 3 years on Optima Park, Dartford for £13.53m/5.5%.

Despite the lack of deal volume, sentiment in the sector has improved markedly from where it was twelve to eighteen-months ago. As a result, DTRE expects liquidity and volumes to pick up over the next couple of quarters with a number of large ‘Big Box’ portfolios and single-let assets expected to be brought to market. However, the geopolitical noise and now the ‘Trump Tariffs’ will continue to act as a handbrake for some, potentially reducing the list of potential purchasers.

Nonetheless, within ‘the noise’ lies the opportunity. Whilst we don’t expect pricing to meaningfully change over the next quarter or two, by autumn the world could look very different and those long-term investors who are able to ‘cut through the noise’ could well have picked up a number of assets that will quickly begin to look relatively good value.

DTRE Big Box Logistics
Report - Q1 2025

DTRE Big Box Logistics Report - Q1 2025

Cut through the noise. At the moment there’s a plethora of topics that all have the ability to drive uncertainty through real estate markets. Whether it’s Trump’s tariffs, spiking gilt yields or National Insurance  contributions, the headlines can make for difficult reading. However, from a real estate perspective, 2025 is shaping up to be a positive year with investors on the front foot looking to capitalise on re-priced assets as the next cycle begins.

With inflation stabilising, DTRE expects the Bank of England to cut rates by 100 bps this year, leaving the Bank Rate at 3.75% by the end of 2025, and these interest rate cuts will provide further liquidity across real estate with pricing and valuations supported by the reduced cost of debt.

 From an occupational perspective, the post-Budget souring of sentiment and resultant downturn in consumer and PMI surveys is expected to be more of a soft-patch rather than a sustained slowdown. As a result, DTRE expects occupier demand to rebound across all the traditional real estate asset classes with rents supported by the supply and demand dynamics that have been further exacerbated in recent times due to rising construction and financing costs.

The logistics sector enjoyed a strong finish to 2024 across both the occupational and capital markets, and despite macro headwinds that momentum has carried on into the early weeks of 2025. In the occupier markets, 2024 was a strong year with take-up of Big Box units (100,000 sq ft) totalling 28.6m sq ft – 13% up on 2023’s total. That total was reached largely without any help from large e-commerce players, demonstrating the market’s depth beyond Amazon and pure-play online retailers.

Third-party logistics providers, grocers and physical retailers were active throughout 2024. While Amazon will be active once more in 2025 with several requirements in the market, we expect the big supermarkets, defence and aerospace-led contracts, and selective high-end manufacturers to be the major drivers of take-up this year.

In the capital markets, 2024 saw £8bn of industrial and logistics assets transact, but that total was reached primarily in the absence of any large pure-logistics portfolios to boost volumes. This year, we expect to see a continuation of the same themes, with investors targeting logistics and urban/multi-let assets with reversion potential. However, as we move through the year and debt becomes more accretive and supportive to valuations, we expect to see some larger portfolios trade.

We’re seeing confidence return to the science and technology market following the second-best year for fundraising on record. Many companies have already resumed their searches for space and started to make new commitments, with a particular surge in demand for larger requirements. We expect this positive momentum in the leasing market to continue through 2025, and drive capital markets activity, too.

Rumours have also begun to swirl around growing private equity interest in UK pharma and pharma services, with several players said to be deep into due diligence. Our expectations are high that these private equity speculations will materialise, providing a further boost to one of the country’s fastest-growing industries.

And finally, while Reeves’ plans for the Oxford- Cambridge Arc are a positive signal from government and should boost market confidence, similar commitments have been made before, in 2017 – so we won’t be holding our breath. Meeting the required commercial and residential capacity in the Arc will be impossible if the existing planning constraints remain in place.

The real test will come in the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. To make meaningful inroads, Reeves will need to extend her ‘coalition of builders’ to local councillors and communities. However, if she is successful in her endeavours, it could require delivery of in excess of 80m sq. ft. of commercial workspace.

With investment in UK living totalling £14bn in 2024 – c.5% up on 2023 – private equity firms and pension funds are increasingly allocating capital to single-family housing, favouring them for their ease of construction and appeal to stable, long-term tenants. We believe that this sustained investment will drive a divergence in the single-family housing market, splitting into two distinct approaches.

On one side, traditional housebuilders will continue to focus on managing excess stock to address slowdowns in new-build sales. These housebuilders benefit from bulk sales through forward funding agreements, which provide them with liquidity and enable them to fund essential infrastructure for their developments.

The other side will feature purpose-built communities, combining multi-family housing principles with horizontal layouts, situated on brownfield land in well-connected urban hubs. With developers, contractors and funders working together in a tri-partite model, these amenity-rich developments will aim to attract renters choosing convenience and lifestyle over ownership.

Against a backdrop of NHS strikes and a national waiting list estimated at 8 million people, demand for private healthcare spaces will continue to rise with service providers looking to accommodate the rapid growth in the self-pay market and a surge in private medical insurance uptake.

For investors, the sector provides stability through long-term, often government-backed income streams. Index-linked leases and operators’ diversified revenue models – balancing self-funded and publicly funded care – enhance resilience, positioning healthcare as a lower-risk investment compared to other industries.

In 2025, we expect private healthcare to outperform other healthcare sub-sectors, fuelled by structural drivers such as the UK’s ageing population and chronic undersupply in senior living and medical office spaces. These factors will sustain demand across these critical segments, solidifying healthcare’s position as a reliable and attractive investment opportunity.

Retail is shaping up to be the ‘surprise sector’ of 2025, with rents climbing as retailers return to high streets and shopping centres. Driven by retail warehousing, we’re expecting institutional interest to reach its highest level in five years as consumer and retailer confidence strengthens.

Prime shopping centres and high street parades will still remain a focal point, while affluent suburban areas will see growth in smaller, convenience-driven retail formats to cater to localised shopping needs. We’re also expecting to see institutional investors continuing to revisit second tier shopping centres, sparking a liquidity rebound.

Experiential retail will continue to reshape the sector, with retailers leaning into immersive, in-store experiences to engage consumers. Demand for adaptable spaces will be driven by pop-ups and interactive events aiming to boost footfall and differentiate physical stores.

The contrast in leasing demand between best-in-class Grade A offices and lower-quality Grade B stock will continue, with many landlords of problem assets needing to make challenging decisions between cutting their losses, investing heavily to retrofit and refurbish, or exploring changes of use (e.g., PRS, BTR or hospitality) within the confines of planning legislation. A critical pinch point is already emerging, driven by rising development costs over the past five years, which have created a significant disparity between the demand for and supply of premium office spaces. As a result, rental growth is expected to continue, but again heavily weighted towards the sparse, premium stock.

As for capital markets, activity is likely to stay muted as long as interest rates remain high and global political uncertainty persists. While market sentiment has slightly improved, tangible signs of recovery have yet to materialise. Well-let Grade A offices in London and the Big Six should continue to offer attractive opportunities, but current owners’ reluctance to sell, due to loose yields, will likely limit transaction volumes.


That said, we anticipate some investors will focus on acquiring vacant possession buildings over the next 12 months, with plans to transform them into modern, top- tier workspaces. These upgraded assets will be well- positioned to meet occupier demand for sustainable, adaptable and high-quality office environments.

DTRE 2025 Outlook

Total science and technology take-up in Cambridge reached 99,300 sq ft across 14 deals by the end of 2024, comprising of 75,800 sq ft of laboratory space and 23,500 sq ft of mid-tech space. This represents a 65% decline year-on-year from 2023, and a 39% drop compared to the five-year average (2019–2023), as the post-COVID constraints on venture capital investment continued to bite, and affect occupier confidence.

The largest deal of the year involved Welbeck Health Partners, who secured 31,000 sq ft at the Orion Building on Howard Group’s Unity Campus. Another notable transaction was Vianautis taking 10,800 sq ft at Cadence also on the Park, with an additional 8,400 sq ft already exchanging there early in 2025.

At the close of Q4, 57,900 sq ft of laboratory and mid-tech space was under offer, with 20% of these transactions already completing in early 2025.

Turning to supply, the total available up-and-built laboratory space in Cambridge reached 224,400 sq ft by year-end, a 159% increase year-on-year, driven by projects like One Granta, which completed in 2024 and remains largely vacant. Despite a subdued year in take-up, and increased stock coming to market, Cambridge maintained the lowest vacancy rate among the Golden Triangle markets, reflecting its resilience and maturity.

DTRE is tracking 667,500 sq ft of total named demand, with 240,000 sq ft classified as active. By count, 13% of demand was for spaces below 10,000 sq ft, with the majority of requirements falling within the 10,000–30,000 sq ft range and the average requirement size being 26,500 sq ft. This highlights Cambridge’s standing as a mature science and technology market, bolstered by an established scientific ecosystem.

38 life science and biotech firms headquartered in Cambridge raised a total of £610 million in 2024 through 111 fundraisings and grants, reflecting a 15% decrease year-on-year. Despite this, the number of deals increased by 3%, a positive signal of market activity and increased investor confidence.

Laboratory take-up in London reached 30,400 sq ft across 15 deals in 2024, with all transactions for spaces under 5,000 sq ft. The largest wet laboratory lease was Baseimmune’s 3,350 sq ft at LBIC Apex, while 4,900 sq ft of dry lab space was taken by a confidential AI company at Caledonia House.

Although take-up was down 43% year-on-year and 62% below the five-year average (2019–2023), 107,000 sq ft was under offer at year-end, which, if completed in 2025, would exceed the five-year average by 33%.

Total demand for laboratory space reached 403,900 sq ft, with 247,700 sq ft categorised as active demand. Reflecting London’s status as the nascent science market, 63% of demand by count was for spaces below 10,000 sq ft, further segmented as 22% below 2,000 sq ft, 20% between 2,000–5,000 sq ft, and 22% between 5,000–10,000 sq ft.

As of year-end, 223,300 sq ft of laboratory space was available, with the bulk concentrated in the Knowledge Quarter, driven by the first wave of purpose-built labs reaching practical completion. In 2025, a further 

1 million sq ft of planned development is set to be delivered within the Knowledge Quarter, including Apex and Reflector at Tribeca, and Pioneer’s Victoria House.

Venture capital into London-based companies reached £1.18 billion in 2024 across 196 fundraisings and grants, accounting for 53% of the Golden Triangle’s total. This figure dramatically surpassed the five-year average (2019–2023) of £694 million and was the second best year on record, just 3.7% down on the COVID peak. With 72% of funding raised in the latter half of the year, we expect this momentum to carry forward into 2025 and revitalise on-hold demand for laboratory space.

Oxford led the Golden Triangle for laboratory take-up in 2024, with 190,100 sq ft occupied by science and technology firms and an additional 18,200 sq ft of mid-tech space transacted. While this marked a 7% year-on-year decline, it was 12% above the five-year average (2019–2023) of 186,500 sq ft, exceeding my earlier projections by 9%. Furthermore, 53,900 sq ft of laboratory space and 12,000 sq ft of mid-tech space was under offer at year-end, with 25,500 sq ft already transacted in 2025.

The largest deal of the year was Novo Nordisk’s lease of 61,000 sq ft at The Iversen Building on The Oxford Science Park, accounting for 29% of total take-up and ranking as Oxford’s third-largest laboratory deal since 2018, behind the Moderna deal in 2023 and Oxford Biomedica’s HQ lease in 2022.

At the close of 2024, 205,400 sq ft of laboratory space was available, with Building One at Begbroke Science Park contributing 63,900 sq ft to the total.

Demand for laboratory and mid-tech space in Oxford stood at 636,800 sq ft, with 373,000 sq ft categorised as active demand. Smaller units were prevalent, with 59% of active demand for spaces below 10,000 sq ft, while 33% targeted spaces between 10,000–30,000 sq ft. This demand pattern underscores Oxford’s position as the middle child of the Golden Triangle markets, blending relative maturity with growth potential.

Venture capital raised by Oxford-headquartered life science and biotech firms totalled £419 million in 2024, a 12% year-on-year decline. Despite this, Oxford has consistently recorded the lowest five-year average of venture capital raised among Golden Triangle markets (£628 million). Encouragingly, 36% of the total was raised in Q4, signalling a potential resurgence in fundraising activity throughout 2025.

Science & Technology Report: Golden Triangle - Q4 2024

2024 was a transformative year for sustainability.

The introduction of Biodiversity Net Gain, the launch of the first agreed methodology for net zero buildings under the UK Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard, and the pre-release of BREEAM New Construction Version 7, slated for formal launch in Q1 2025. 

There were also significant revisions to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, together with potentially transformative elections in the UK, US and elsewhere.

Our full report explores the key sustainability trends that shaped industrial and logistics transactions in 2024 and offers predictions for what lies ahead in 2025. A full copy is available on request but you can find our headlines below.

Sustainability within real estate begins with addressing effective operational 

 emerges from improved asset quality, and our data analysis demonstrates a strong correlation between 

 and rent achieved. When these elements align successfully, they contribute to a favourable 

DTRE’s 5Cs of Sustainability

5 Things You Need to Know About Big Box Logistics in Q4 2024

1. Big Box take-up for the year reached 28.6 million sq ft, 13% ahead of 2023’s 25.3 million sq ft and 17% ahead of the ‘Pre-Covid’ average (2007-19).

2. DTRE Big Box Vacancy Rate (all units over 100,000 sq ft) rose to 7.2% at the end of the year, up from 6.9% in Q3.

3. Speculative development remains low, with 9.5 million sq ft due to complete in 2025, down 25% on the 10-year average (2014-2024) of 12.6 million sq ft.

4. Industrial and logistics investment volumes totalled £2.4bn in the final quarter of the year, a 9% increase on the 10-year quarterly average. Pushing total volumes for the year to £8bn.

5. DTRE believe the recent move in the gilt market is overdone and will correct itself once the market realises that higher rates are ultimately disinflationary as tighter credit and the rising costs of capital will sap demand, reduce pricing power and ultimately mean the Bank of England can continue on its interest rate cutting cycle.

Despite the wider gloomy economic rhetoric that engulfed the UK during the last quarter of 2024, Big Box logistics take-up rounded out the year with a relatively strong finish, all things considered. Take-up in Q4 reached 9 million sq ft, which was 61% up on the slow Q3 we saw during the summer, 48% up on the ‘Pre-Covid’ 2007-19 average and the second best quarter since the end of 2021.

DTRE recorded 31 deals in the last three months of 2024, meaning it was the busiest quarter of the year and a total of 111 across the year which is 10% ahead of the long-run ‘Pre-Covid’ average. Total take-up for 2024 was 28.6 million sq ft, up 13% year-on-year and 17% ahead of the ‘Pre-Covid’ average.

The biggest transaction of Q4, and the year, by a distance saw Frasers pay £53.5 million to Harworth Group for a 278-acre site near Ansty in Warwickshire for their global HQ. The logistics element of the campus will see the development of five BREEAM Outstanding facilities totalling 3.3 million sq ft. In addition to Frasers, a confidential retailer took 967,177 sq ft at Symmetry Park Kettering from Tritax Big Box Developments and Rockwool signed for 520,000 sq ft at Peddimore, Birmingham. The biggest deal on standing stock saw Oxenwood let their second-hand OXW277 (277,000 sq ft) unit in Dunstable to JD Retail. DSV also leased 215,627 sq ft from ICG to occupy the final available unit at Mercia Park, Appleby Magna following JLR surrendering space.

Whilst Frasers, Nike and B&M were involved in three of the biggest deals of 2024, demand from the retail sector collapsed during the last twelve months. The 3.3 million sq ft Frasers deal, which was concluded on Christmas Eve, took the total volume acquired by retailers to 11.6 million sq ft, but that masks a wider slowdown as the actual number of deals done totalled just 18 for the year. That’s the fewest number of lettings to retailers on record, down 42% on the ‘Pre-Covid’ average and reflective of a wider slump in retail sales and consumer confidence.

Once more the manufacturing sector failed to pick-up much slack with just over 5.2 million sq ft of demand coming from the sector, which again reflected much of the data from the PMI manufacturing surveys and manufacturing GDP. DTRE are yet to see any substantial evidence of the often quoted ‘near-shoring’, ‘re-shoring’ and ‘friend-shoring’ occurring in the UK. Manufacturing take-up in 2024 was 22% behind the 10-year annual average of 6.7 million sq ft we witnessed from 2014-2023. 

Positively the 3PLs saw another strong year with take-up of 7.6 million sq ft across 2024, which outside of Covid was the second strongest year for take-up on record and 33% ahead of the 5.7 million sq ft 3PL’s typically took per annum prior to Covid (2007-19). This does suggest that the retailers were perhaps seeking to satisfy demand in shorter term, less capital intensive 3PL space with greater flexibility over future certainty of demand for space.

In terms of geographies, the East Midlands dominated take-up accounting for 30% with the supply constrained North West seeing just 2.4 million sq ft of take-up and the lowest level of take-up DTRE have recorded since 2009. Albeit with only 7.9 million sq ft of available standing stock, the North West has the least amount of supply of all the core regions (South East & London 8.8m sq ft; West Midlands 8.9m sq ft; East Midlands 12.7m sq ft; Yorks & Humber 9.3m sq ft), and just three new buildings available bigger than 200,000 sq ft.

The DTRE Big Box Vacancy rate (all units over 100,000 sq ft) did tick up slightly through the quarter and now stands at 7.2%, up from 6.9%. This was predominantly due to 1.35 million sq ft of ‘New’/Grade A product coming to the market whilst there was also an increase in Grade B space of 425,000 sq ft. Total supply stands at 54.35 million sq ft, up 15% year-on-year.

We mentioned last quarter how the pipeline for 2025 looked relatively sparse and that continues to be the case. DTRE are currently tracking 9.5 million sq ft of speculatively built Big Box (100,000 sq ft +) units that will be completed in 2025, which is down 25% on the annual average of 12.6 million sq ft of new spec development completions seen in each year from 2018 – 2024.

The largest number of new units is set to be delivered in units between 100-200,000 sq ft (16 units) but overall there’s a good spread across the other size ranges with Panattoni’s 770,000 sq ft A1M scheme in Harworth and GLP’s MPN761 at Magna Park Lutterworth the two biggest developments scheduled to complete in 2025.

DTRE expects 2025 to be a year of two-halves, with leasing volumes continuing at around their recent quarterly average of 5.5-6.5 million sq ft. Growth areas of the market should come from defence manufacturers as well as the retailers, driven by the return of the grocers. We expect the big grocers to continue in their pursuit of operational efficiencies and to return to the market in the latter half of the year and when allied with a pick-up in consumer sentiment this will help drive overall take-up volumes to be slightly ahead of what we have witnessed in 2024 at around 30 million sq ft.

In a similar vein to the leasing market, the capital markets enjoyed a strong end to the year with just over £2.4bn of industrial stock trading during the last three months of the year, the second-best quarterly total since the Truss/Kwarteng mini-budget in September 2022 and a 9% increase on the 10-year quarterly average (including the ‘Covid’ era).

Overall, industrial and logistics volumes totalled £8bn for 2024, with Big Box logistics assets accounting for 39% of that total. However, as the year ended fresh macro-economic concerns are taking hold once more (sticky and re-accelerating inflation coupled with anaemic UK growth prospects). As 2025 begins, those concerns are most evident in the UK’s gilt market, which is undergoing a significant correction and has potential to destabilise the fragile recovery.

The two largest deals of the last three months were both undertaken by new entrants to the UK’s logistics sector. Firstly, GoldenTree purchased Abrdn’s 40 asset/3.3 million sq ft Apex Portfolio for £351m/7.54% NIY (however only £183m of this was industrial and logistics). Secondly, RN3 Partners acquired Icon & Alpha at Manchester Airport from THG for £180m/4.94% NIY. Other Big Box deals of note were Sunrise’s purchase of a 756,000 sq ft Tesco unit on DIRFT for £105m/4.24% NIY and Mapletree’s purchase of a 629,000 sq ft GXO unit on Derby Commercial Park for £86.1m/5.37%.

Pricing in Q4 remained firm across the board and as had been the case for much of the year, for ‘prime’ product, there was a significant depth of prospective purchasers. Although Premier Park in Manchester and Enfield Distribution Park (ENDP) are more last mile/mid box in nature, both attracted significant interest from UK institutions as well as overseas platform investors. The result being that Premier Park traded 25% ahead of quote (£46.9m achieved vs £37.5m quote) and ENDP traded 10% ahead of quote (£110m achieved vs £100m quote).

Whilst the year looked to be ending positively and the market moving off the lows of the last two years a speed bump has certainly been hit in the last couple of weeks of 2024 which has continued into 2025 and is most evident in the bond market, with the UK gilt undergoing a significant correction in the last four weeks. In the last month the UK 10-year gilt has risen from 4.2% to stand at 4.8%. Whilst the reasons for this are numerous the knock-on effect will be felt within real estate and pricing of real estate assets.

Nevertheless, we believe the recent move in the gilt market is overdone and will correct itself once the market realises that higher rates are ultimately disinflationary as tighter credit and the rising costs of capital will sap demand, reduce pricing power and ultimately mean the Bank of England can continue on its interest rate cutting cycle.