The newest phase of Manchester’s world-leading health innovation campus, has officially opened its doors, further strengthening the city’s reputation as a major centre for life sciences, precision medicine and health innovation.
Bruntwood SciTech, a joint venture between Bruntwood, Legal & General and Greater Manchester Pension Fund, continues to drive investment into Manchester’s science and technology ecosystem, with the state-of-the-art workspace and opportunities available for businesses at Citylabs 4.0 playing a key part of this strategy.
Developed by Bruntwood SciTech, the joint venture with Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), the UK’s largest NHS Trust – the £42 million, 125,000 sq ft facility is set to drive forward life sciences and healthcare innovation across Greater Manchester.
The opening will be marked by a special launch event featuring renowned scientist, doctor, and broadcaster Professor Robert Winston, alongside a live podcast recording and exclusive tours of the cutting-edge new space.
The seven-storey building provides a mix of high-specification office and laboratory space, including containment level 1 (CL1) and level 2 (CL2) biology and chemistry labs, designed to support businesses of all sizes working in life sciences, medtech, biotech, diagnostics, genomics, precision medicine, AI and digital health.
Manchester’s life science sector continues to expand, ranking third in the UK following Oxford and Cambridge in sector growth. This progress has been driven by a combination of purposeful clustering, aligned public and private sector vision, and strategic investment, which have supported the city’s statement of intent to be a world-class hub for health innovation.
The opening of Citylabs 4.0 builds on this momentum, providing state-of-the-art facilities designed to foster research and industry collaboration, further strengthening Manchester’s position in the sector.
Located in MFT’s Oxford Road hospital hub and within Europe’s largest clinical-academic campus, Citylabs 4.0 is the latest addition to the growing Citylabs cluster. The campus is already home to major global life science companies, including global diagnostics company QIAGEN, which has established its Global Centre of Excellence for Precision Medicine at Citylabs 2.0, as well as APIS Assay Technologies, ophthalmic instrument manufacturer Takagi and MAC Clinical Research, one of Europe’s largest contract research organisations.
The co-location with MFT, England’s largest NHS Trust, provides life science businesses with direct access to joint clinical trials, diagnostic collaborations, medtech adoption, and advanced resources including sample supplies, clinicians, industry expertise and research. Many companies based at Citylabs are already engaged in these partnerships, leveraging MFT’s expertise to accelerate the development and application of new healthcare innovations through to rapid, large scale adoption. QIAGEN exemplifies the benefits of this collaboration, working closely with MFT and the wider Manchester health innovation ecosystem to drive advancements in precision medicine and diagnostics, enhancing the development of targeted treatments and improving patient outcomes. Citylabs 4.0 will scale these opportunities further, supporting more businesses looking to collaborate with the Trust.
The hub is surrounded by some of the UK’s most eminent teaching hospitals, including Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Saint Mary’s Hospital and the Manchester Royal Eye Hospital – all part of MFT. Sitting at the heart of the city’s health and life science cluster, it is surrounded by world-class research centres including Manchester Centre for Genomic Medicine, The University of Manchester Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, two of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Manchester Clinical Research Facility sites, the Pankhurst Institute, and the operational home of the NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre.
Life science businesses at Citylabs also gain access to the Oxford Road Corridor knowledge quarter, which is home to more than half of the city’s life science businesses and generates around £3bn GVA each year. The hub is also a government-designated High Potential Opportunity Zone for Diagnostics and Healthy Ageing.
Designed with collaboration and sustainability at its core, Citylabs 4.0 features communal breakout spaces and access to wider campus amenities, including meeting and event spaces, cafe, secure cycle storage, showers and kit drying rooms. The building’s infrastructure supports the specific needs of life science businesses with specialist lab facilities, enhanced cooling systems, increased floor loading and a large platform lift.
Sustainability has been central to the development, achieving net zero carbon in construction and operation in its shared spaces and is 100% electric. The building holds an EPC A rating and includes 208m² of solar panels, capable of generating enough energy to charge an electric vehicle over 1,200 times. The cladding system is also made from 75% recycled end-of-life aluminium, significantly reducing its carbon footprint.
Dr Kath Mackay, Chief Scientific Officer for Bruntwood SciTech, said: “Citylabs 4.0 is a significant milestone in the continued evolution of Manchester’s world-leading life sciences ecosystem. The campus has already played a crucial role in supporting pioneering healthcare businesses to scale and work in direct collaboration with the NHS, and this latest development further cements its position as a location for scientific breakthroughs and innovation. By bringing together industry and the NHS we’re creating a collaborative environment where innovation can thrive, ultimately leading to real-world healthcare advancements that will benefit patients across Greater Manchester and beyond.”
Mark Cubbon, Chief Executive Officer at MFT, said: “The opening of Citylabs 4.0 represents an exciting new chapter in our pioneering partnership with Bruntwood SciTech. By co-locating life sciences businesses within the NHS services at our Oxford Road campus, we are creating an environment where research and innovation can rapidly translate into real-world healthcare solutions for our patients and communities in Greater Manchester, and beyond.
“Over the past decade, we’ve seen first-hand the transformative impact of collaboration between industry, academia, and the NHS. We look forward to welcoming more innovators to Citylabs 4.0 as we work together to reduce health inequalities, tackle the most pressing health challenges of our time, and respond to the Government’s challenge of making Britain a powerhouse for life sciences and medical technology.”
Cllr Bev Craig, Leader, Manchester City Council, said: “Manchester’s life sciences sector is world renowned and rapidly developing – outpacing many major European peers – with the city at the heart of the North West ecosystem’s growth. Citylabs 4.0 is the latest iteration of a proven and successful model; the top-specification lab space it offers will be key to responding to the demand we are seeing from the exciting start-ups and spinouts generated along the Oxford Road Corridor and the city more widely – supported by the talented graduates produced by nearby institutions and an increasingly dynamic city centre right on the doorstep.”
