Cambridge Question Time: Speculative office on the cards for Howard Group

Cambridge-based Howard Group is considering speculatively building 60,000 sq ft of offices in response to the growing demand from life sciences companies for new accommodation at relatively short notice.

The development company’s plans will be subject to approval for an existing application for a 200,000 sq ft business park in Sawston in south Cambridgeshire.

The first phase of the Sawston scheme will provide a 72,000 sq ft of mixed use space, including co-working offices.

William Jewson, development director, said: “We are seriously considering building speculatively as the sort of occupiers our buildings appeal to don’t like to wait 18 months for a new building. They don’t plan that far ahead. What they like to see is a building coming out of the ground so they know it’s going to be completed by the time they are ready. And often they like to engage with the developer as it is being built, then refine it to their requirements.”