Stage set for major new life-sciences redevelopment at The London Cancer Hub

Image: a conceptual image of what The London Cancer Hub could look like when complete

The Institute of Cancer Research, London, has welcomed the news that insurer Aviva and developer Socius have been announced as the preferred bidder for a major life-sciences redevelopment project at The London Cancer Hub in Sutton.

The consortium is set to purchase land adjacent to the ICR’s estate that is now owned by the London Borough of Sutton – and has committed to creating a state-of-the-art life-science development dedicated to cancer research and treatment.

Aviva Capital Partners is Aviva’s in-house capital investment unit. Socius is a land developer with a £1.5bn pipeline of projects including major developments in Cambridge, Brighton, Bristol and Milton Keynes.

Aviva and Socius were confirmed as the preferred bidder for the redevelopment at a Sutton Council Strategy and Resources Committee meeting last week. The council is now expected to complete a due diligence process and negotiate the detailed terms of the lease for the land before the sale of the leasehold is completed.

The London Cancer Hub

The London Cancer Hub is an ambitious project that aims to create the world’s leading centre for cancer research, treatment, education and enterprise in Sutton.

Recent developments at The London Cancer Hub include the ICR’s £75m Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery, the Harris Academy Sutton, Maggie’s cancer support centre at The Royal Marsden – the latter two of which have won prestigious architectural awards – and The Royal Marsden’s Oak Cancer Centre.

The next phase in the project is set to create a large volume of commercial life sciences space to house pharma, biotech and MedTech companies. It follows on from the successful launch of the Innovation Gateway, an incubator space for life-sciences companies working in oncology, which is now full.

Simon Francis, our Director of Estates and Facilities, said:

“It’s brilliant news that development at The London Cancer Hub is continuing at such a pace, and we look forward to working closely with Aviva and Socius, as well as the other London Cancer Hub partners, once the formal sale of the leasehold has been completed.

“We’re especially looking forward to learning more about plans to bring more life-sciences companies to the site, further adding to the thriving, interdisciplinary cancer science community that exists here in Sutton – and ultimately we hope that new companies coming here as part of this new development will be able to collaborate with our scientists to develop new treatments for cancer patients.”

Supporting The London Cancer Hub

The ICR is the co-leading partner in The London Cancer Hub project alongside Sutton Council. Supporting partners include The Royal Marsden, Epsom & St Helier NHS Foundation Trust, and The Mayor of London.

Other exciting recent developments at The London Cancer Hub include the filling of the Innovation Gateway, an incubator for innovative life-sciences companies, and a £14.1m grant from the Government's Levelling Up Fund to improve services and infrastructure at nearby Belmont rail station.

Encouraging innovative collaborations

Professor Paul Workman, our former Chief Executive and Harrap Professor of Cancer Pharmacology and Therapeutics, said:

“We’re confident that new commercial space here at The London Cancer Hub will deliver great benefits – by encouraging innovative collaborations between academics, clinicians, and industry, by facilitating the kinds of breakthroughs that can only come from working across scientific and organisational boundaries, and by providing the new treatments for people with cancer that are so urgently needed.”

John Cummins, CEO of Aviva Capital Partners, said:

“Aviva is investing significantly in critical areas of the UK economy such as housing, green energy and healthcare. We are using our capital to generate long term income for our customers and help the UK to grow. The London Cancer Hub will provide world-class cancer research and bolster the UK’s ambition to be a leader in the Life Sciences sector.”

Barry Jessup, Managing Director of Socius, said:

“This is a once in a generation opportunity to deliver a sustainable campus for excellence in cancer research. Our vision is to build on the ground-breaking facilities already provided by The Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden hospital with a new ecosystem of labs, R&D and commercial facilities in a campus setting that will attract researchers and scientists from around the world and accelerate the development of ground breaking cancer treatments.

"We look forward to working with Aviva, London Borough of Sutton and key local stakeholders to develop our plans for the site.”