Take-up

2021 regional office take-up totalled 5.7 million sq ft. This represented a significant increase of 28% on the 2020 total. Once more, take-up in 2021 was just 8% below the ten-year average as the markets look to recover from the ongoing effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Grade A take-up totalled 2.6 million sq ft which represented an increase of 21% on 2020. As a proportion of total take-up, Grade A accounted for 46% at year end.

Supply

Total supply increased by 10% in 2021 to a total of 14.6 million sq ft. Furthermore, Grade A supply also increased to 5 million sq ft. This was a 25% increase on the 2020 figure.

These increases were heavily influenced by the introduction of new developments into the supply total. This included 230,000 sq ft at 103 Colmore Row in Birmingham, 157,000 sq ft at Three New Bailey in Manchester and 94,000 sq ft at Cadworks in Glasgow.

Take-up by business sector

The TMT sector was most active this year, accounting for 21% of total take-up. This included 22 lettings of over 10,000 sq ft across the regional markets.

Elsewhere, it was a strong year for the Public Services, Education & Health sector. Here, the 15% share of overall take-up included lettings of 75,000 sq ft to Student Loans Company in Glasgow and 74,000 sq ft to the University of Bristol at Trinity Quay.

Biosciences also delivered promising returns as the third most active sector, recording 11% of overall take-up. Much of this success can be attributed to Oxford and Cambridge, where 70% of Biosciences take-up was recorded in 2021.

Rents

Prime rents grew by 3% in Manchester in 2021, standing at £38.50 per square foot at year end. This continued the growth trend in the market, which has seen 13.2% growth over the past six years. Average Grade A rents also increased in 2021 as the market looks to continue its recovery from the pandemic. Here, average Grade A rents grew by 2% to £30.65 per square foot. That said, this is still 4% below the pre-pandemic high of £32 per square foot.

View all of our latest Occupational Office Data research here.