Addleshaw Goddard has advised British Land on the £87m acquisition of two innovation parks in Cambridge and Surrey.

Peterhouse Technology Park in Cambridge was purchased for £75m, representing an initial net yield of 4.15%. The 8.25-acre site includes 140,000 sq ft of office and laboratory space split across four buildings, all of which are currently leased to technology company Arm.

The company has also exchanged contracts on the 7.8-acre Priestly Centre in Guildford, located within Surrey Research Park, for £12m. 

Addleshaw Goddard advised British Land on all elements of the transactions. The team was led by Christopher Cartwright, Real Estate Partner, with support from Matt Lucas, Legal Director; Katherine Watson, Associate; and Helen Jamieson, Associate. Construction elements were led by James Reynolds, Partner, with support from Amelia Shaw, Associate. Paul Concannon, Partner, and Kyle Rainsford, Managing Associate, advised on tax issues.

The deals follow a number of significant deals AG has worked on within the life sciences sector, including advising Bruntwood SciTech on a £95m sustainability-linked loan facility as well as a successful bid to develop the £1.5bn ID Manchester innovation district. 

Christopher Cartwright, Real Estate Partner at Addleshaw Goddard, said:

"Investors are putting their trust in the UK life science and tech sectors following a string of recent innovation breakthroughs. Development of dedicated real estate to service these industries will be key to driving economic growth in the wake of Covid-19, including through providing jobs for people working within vital industries.

"It was a pleasure working with British Land on their first major investments into the life science and innovation sectors. The sites are ideally located within some of the UK's largest innovation clusters, benefiting from access to high-quality talent and world-class facilities."