The Crown Estate has acquired a plot of land next to a major science hub in Oxfordshire as part of a pledge to plug £1.5 billion into the sector.
The Harwell East site has been earmarked for the development of a potential 4.5 million square foot of office, laboratory and manufacturing space and up to 400 new homes.
It means the site, which is currently farmland, will be added to the extensive portfolio of the Crown Estate, which oversees the royal family’s land and property holdings.
The 221-acre site sits next to the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire, home to facilities by companies including vaccine-maker Moderna and the UK Space Agency.
More than 50 organisations have joined the leading science hub in the past two years.
Harwell East is expected to be developed to provide additional space for labs and advanced manufacturing facilities to help meet growing demand among businesses.
The Crown Estate said there was currently a lack of space for early-stage businesses in locations such as Oxford, making it harder for them to stay and expand in the UK.
It is working to secure planning permission to build on the area.
Dan Labbad, chief executive of the Crown Estate, said: “The UK’s science, innovation and technology community is pushing the boundaries of progress in areas from AI (artificial intelligence) to advanced manufacturing.
“But they need the specialised lab facilities and housing to realise potential.
“The ambition of Harwell East is to create the space for great science to flourish, and to fuel growth and success not just in the region but for the benefit of the whole country.”
Science Minister Lord Vallance said: “Opening up Harwell East could help the brilliant businesses and innovators based here to expand and tackle the great challenges of our era, with access to the labs, facilities, and homes they need to do their work.
“The vast economic potential of this site underlines precisely why we are determined to fully unlock the Oxford-Cambridge growth corridor, as an engine for nationwide growth.”
The Crown Estate has pledged to invest up to £1.5 billion in the science, technology and innovation sectors across the UK over 15 years.
It is run as an independent business, but belongs to the monarch for the duration of their reign, with a £15 billion portfolio of property that spans the country including London’s West End.
Profits made by the company are partly used to fund the work of the monarchy.
