London Lab Spaces: Pioneering the Future of Life Sciences Innovation

It’s official: London is Europe’s life sciences capital.

That’s according to MedCity’s Global Cities Comparison Report, which judges cities based on five key metrics: Research Innovation, Health Research Environment, Talent Ecosystem, Investment Environment, and Business Environment. London ranks first in Europe and third worldwide, rubbing shoulders with Boston and New York.

MedCity credits the capital’s unique mix of cutting-edge research and the thriving community of skilled professionals working in London lab spaces as key to its success as a science powerhouse. The latest figures support this; Greater London is now home to around 2,500 life sciences companies, with approximately 90 spin-offs or start-ups emerging each year, according to On London.

The perfect blueprint

So, what exactly is it about the capital that makes it the perfect home for a life science business?

Laying the foundations is a potent mix of world-class universities, specialist hospitals like Great Ormond Street and Moorfields Eye Hospital, and our unique National Health Service. This is further enhanced by the city’s sophisticated financial ecosystem and proximity to policymakers, forming the blueprint for a thriving superstructure.

More specifically, London tops MedCity’s report in the “Health Research Environment” category, thanks in large part to the UK’s regulatory framework. We benefit from a system that is not just efficient but swift; the recently launched International Recognition Programme, for example, allows decisions by approved regulatory bodies to be fast-tracked. Last year, it took just 30 days for a new formulation of XGEVA (denosumab), a monoclonal antibody used for the treatment of osteoporosis, to gain approval via this route.

Such agility is a critical advantage in a field where time can mean the difference between breakthrough and stagnation. Combined with London’s enduring strengths in research and innovation, it’s clear why the capital continues to foster a thriving ecosystem that places it at the forefront of the global life sciences sector.

The future of London lab spaces

Sustaining this growth means addressing pressing challenges, most notably the widely reported acute shortage of suitable London lab spaces.

Standard office buildings, no matter how modern, are unable to support the complex needs of cutting-edge science. Laboratories demand robust infrastructure to handle the weight and vibration of equipment like centrifuges, which often require specialised installations within a building. Add to this significant power and water requirements, ventilation systems capable of mitigating chemical and biological hazards, and highly controlled environments that must sometimes be ultra-clean or entirely dark. These aren’t luxuries – they’re necessities, and creating spaces tailored to these requirements is imperative.

Encouragingly, MedCity predicts that lab space constructed in London will have nearly doubled to two million sq ft by the end of 2026, compared to space constructed between 2021 and 2024. It also forecasts a seven-fold increase by 2032 to 7.2 million sq ft, of which 2.7 million sq ft will be wet lab space. The largest volume of upcoming development is predicted to be in London’s Knowledge Quarter.

Victoria House: designed for discovery

A standout example of this new kind of London lab space is Victoria House, a stunning Grade II listed building in the heart of the Knowledge Quarter. Carefully redeveloped, it now serves as a state-of-the-art hub for life sciences, marrying its historic charm with the evolving demands of modern science.

The building offers a flexible mix of CAT-A laboratory spaces and incubator facilities designed to support organisations at every stage of their journey. Start-ups, for instance, can take advantage of the seventh floor’s 23,000-square-foot incubator space, designed to grow with them. Businesses can start small, with a single bench in a shared co-working lab, before expanding into their own dedicated spaces as they scale.

Victoria House isn’t just about physical infrastructure; it’s a fully realised ecosystem. Features such as six air changes per hour, up to 65% CL2 laboratories, and access to shared high-quality equipment demonstrate the meticulous attention to detail. Beyond this, the building offers skilled operational teams, administrative support, and curated networking opportunities, fostering a stimulating and nurturing environment that allows companies at all stages of their development to meet and collaborate. 

Victoria House also offers opportunities for tenants to work with local schools on STEM outreach, support local supply chains, and engage with the wider cluster.

A place to live and work

If London is to remain a global leader in life sciences, it’s not just cutting-edge London lab spaces like Victoria House that need to be designed and built. Figures from Oxford Economics show that the life sciences industry now employs one in every 121 UK workers, contributing over £13 billion to the economy in 2023 alone. Supporting the growth of life science clusters means addressing the fundamentals – affordable housing for professionals and efficient transport links are not just desirable, but vital to maintaining momentum.

The recent report from British Land, ‘Accelerating Innovation – A Five Point Plan To Boost Life Science Real Estate’, underscores the urgency of this challenge. It finds that, while life sciences companies are focused on attracting and retaining top talent, the UK faces a workforce growth rate that trails behind European competitors. Add to this the ongoing housing crisis, and it’s clear that affordable housing, or the lack thereof it, is becoming a serious barrier to growth. For R&D clusters in high-cost areas like London, the situation is even more acute.

To tackle this, developers are beginning to think beyond labs and office spaces. Integrating residential developments near life sciences hubs could be the key to retaining talent and supporting a thriving ecosystem. Boston provides a compelling model, where live-work environments have enabled seamless collaboration and a higher quality of life for professionals in the sector.