Nestled in the eastern part of England, East Anglia – comprising Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and Cambridgeshire – has emerged in recent years as a dynamic hub helping to propel the UK’s economic growth. In this article, our Debt Finance Director based in the region, Martin Williams, delves deeper into the reasons behind this, and why it makes this region an attractive one for lenders like OakNorth.
A hotbed of talent
East Anglia is home to 10 universities, including the world-renowned Cambridge University. What this means is that every year, thousands of people from all over the world move here to study, while thousands more graduate and begin looking for employment. As a result, there is a wealth of talent available in the region, making it an attractive location for high-growth, innovative companies.
From our perspective as a lender, this creates numerous opportunities – particularly with regard to purpose-built student accommodation, residential developments, and office space. Places such as Cambridge, Bury St Edmunds and Norwich continue to rank as some of the most desirable places to live in the UK. Further East, Ipswich is one of the UK’s fastest-growing towns, where I personally led an OakNorth transaction to support Pertwee Estates with a loan following the conversion of a site on Princes Street into 24,000 sq. ft of high-specification office space that is now fully let.
In late October, OakNorth completed an £11m loan to Essex-headquartered SME housebuilder, Blueprint Property Group, to develop a new ten-acre residential scheme. The group specialises in residential development, sales, and lettings, as well as land acquisitions and disposals, and has completed numerous residential schemes across the region.
An innovation hub
East Anglia’s strength lies in its commitment to innovation. The Cambridge Science Park, established in the 1970s, has become a nucleus for pioneering technology and life science companies, and Cambridge’s “Silicon Fen” has seen remarkable growth in tech start-ups, attracting investment and fostering a culture of entrepreneurship. Well-known tech companies such as Darktrace and ARM Holdings started here, creating employment opportunities, and elevating the region’s status as an innovation hub on the global stage. Other success stories that have come out of the region include AI company, Prowler.io, and biotech firm, Bicycle Therapeutics – both of which are thriving in Cambridge and contributing to the region’s economic upsurge.
However, this growth isn’t limited to technology companies – we’re seeing businesses across a variety of sectors finding new creative ways to scale and compete. Earlier this quarter for example, we completed a tailored loan facility to MRW Group, which has offices in Cambridgeshire, Buckinghamshire, and Somerset, to support its buy-and-build strategy, starting with the acquisition of three IFA businesses. In June, I led a £37m transaction with UK Storage, one of the UK’s largest independent self-storage providers with 28 stores, including several across East Anglia, totalling over 880,000 sq. ft. The UK’s self-storage market has experienced significant growth in recent years, driven by people reconfiguring their homes to accommodate hybrid working.
Government investments and infrastructure development
The government has recognised East Anglia’s potential and has made strategic investments to catalyse its growth further. In January, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities awarded £25m to Freeport East, a UK freeport made up of Felixstowe and Harwich ports, and Gateway 14 business park off the A14, designed to offer tax and duty breaks to encourage business activity.
The construction of the A14 Cambridge to Huntingdon improvement scheme, the dualling of the A11, and the Norwich Northern Distributor Road are just a few other examples of infrastructure development projects aimed at enhancing connectivity and supporting economic growth in the region.
The A14 and A11 are particularly interesting from our perspective, as they’ve seen significant increases in warehousing and logistics – a big growth area given the rise in online shopping since COVID-19. Last October for example, I led on a £1.52m loan to support the development of three new warehouses at Snetterton Business Park near Norwich.
Infrastructure investments such as these not only foster job creation – Freeport East is expected to create over 13,500 jobs over its lifetime – but also boost East Anglia’s connectivity with other parts of the UK, helping to make it an even more attractive location for top talent and top businesses.
The quality of talent, number of infrastructure investments, and scale of innovation coming out of East Anglia is no mere coincidence, but a result of strategic planning, and collective efforts by businesses, educational institutions, and government initiatives. The result is that the economic contributions from various sectors in the region, including technology, agriculture, life sciences, and renewable energy, have propelled East Anglia’s economy, contributing substantially to the UK’s overall economic prosperity.
If you’re a high-growth business based in East Anglia, get in touch today to find out how OakNorth can support your next ambitious move.
