Gorvins facilitates UK Biobank’s move to Manchester Science Park

Stockport solicitors, Gorvins, have advised UK Biobank on its future move to a new headquarters at Bruntwood’s Manchester Science Park, near Manchester University.

The move to the new cutting edge 131,000 sq ft Greenheys building, of which UK Biobank will occupy three floors, is supported by UK Research and Innovation Infrastructure Fund’s £127 million award. This new facility will ensure that researchers across the globe can more efficiently access UK Biobank’s millions of samples to turn them into data which can be used to propel research and innovation.

Currently based in Cheadle Heath, UK Biobank is the world’s most comprehensive source of health data available for research, housing a vast and continuously growing dataset of biological, health and lifestyle information collected over 15 years from half a million UK volunteers. Over 30,000 researchers from universities, charities, companies and governments in more than 90 countries are registered to use the de-identified data to better understand the causes of disease and drive the discovery of new preventions, treatments and cures.

The new £75 million research centre, which is due to open in 2026, will include laboratory space and a latest-generation robotic freezer that stores and retrieves UK Biobank’s 20 million biological samples four times faster than before, revolutionising the pace of scientific discovery. It will put UK Biobank near leading institutions operating across research, academia, business and the NHS, and be one of the first lab spaces in the UK to be 100% electric and net zero carbon in both construction and in its operation of shared spaces.

The Gorvins team advised UK Biobank on the transactional real estate elements, and was led by Paul Dowdall, Partner, with support from Amanda Porter, Partner and Karen Davenport, Legal Executive.