Plans in for £60m expansion of Manchester Science Partnerships’ Citylabs scheme

Manchester Science Partnerships (MSP), the science and technology park operator, has submitted a planning application for an eight-figure expansion of its Citylabs campus.

The organisation is calling on Manchester City Council to approve the £60m project, which could see its biomedical centre of excellence boost the local economy by over £100m and create 750 jobs during the next three years.

The proposed development is brought forward by a joint venture partnership between MSP and Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CMFT).

If approved the new buildings, Citylabs 2.0 and 3.0, will be located on the CMFT campus in the Corridor Manchester innovation district and target companies from the health and medical technology sectors.

The £25m Citylabs 2.0 development, which forms phase one of the project, will house 92,000 sq ft of lab and office space.

Subject to planning consent, construction work will start in Autumn 2017, with completion expected by late 2018.

Phase two, which begins in Summer 2018, will add a further 128,000 sq ft within the £35m Citylabs 3.0 building, which will integrate the development of new buildings with the existing Old Saint Mary’s Hospital building. Completion is expected in 2020.

Manchester Science Partnerships’ managing director, Thomas Renn, said: “After consulting with the local community and other stakeholders last month, we’re pleased and excited to be bringing this ambitious development forward.

“The success of Citylabs 1.0 – which was fully let within 15 months of opening – has given us the confidence to invest in phases two and three, and we are sure demand will be strong for these high quality facilities located in a great physical and intellectual environment.”

CMFT’s director of innovation, Keith Chantler, commented: “This joint partnership with MSP offers a fantastic opportunity for our patients, staff and our hospitals, to further develop the successful Citylabs cluster.

“Citylabs brings together NHS, university and industry partners to co-develop new healthcare technologies.”

He added: “By involving clinicians and patients from the start of the development and testing process, products are more likely to meet our future needs, and be rapidly adopted by the NHS and other health services across the world.”

The application was submitted by property firm Bruntwood on behalf of MSP.

Chris Roberts, Bruntwood’s development director, said of the scheme: “The planned expansion of Citylabs is a great vote of confidence in Manchester and alongside the existing major developments on the city’s Innovation District – such as Circle Square and the Alliance Manchester Business School – will reinforce its credentials as a world class location for science and technology businesses.”