Which sectors will generate demand for South East offices?
Despite acknowledged diversity, a small number of industry sectors will drive future economic and office market growth in the South East.
1 minute to read
The South East has long been recognised as the second-most prosperous region in the UK after London. Despite ongoing political uncertainty, the region is forecast to remain an economic powerhouse for UK plc.
According to Experian, the South Eastern economy will grow in Gross Value Added (GVA) terms by 7.8% over the next five years – adding £26.2 billion to a total GVA of £291 billion by the end of 2023. This will lead to employment growth. In fact, the regional economy will generate almost 108,000 jobs over the next five years.
From an office market perspective, four of the ten sectors are of particular interest: pharmaceuticals, media, computer and information services, and professional services. Collectively, these four sectors employed almost 532,000 full-time equivalents in the South East at the end of 2018. Applying a space of 110 sq ft per person, these four ‘dynamo’ sectors occupy approximately 58.5 million sq ft of office space across the region. They also account for £40.65 billion – or 16% – of the regions GVA.
The future trajectory of these sectors is statistically encouraging. Over the next five years, the four dynamo sectors will add £4 billion of GVA and 14,000 new full-time equivalent jobs. Again, adopting a standard density of occupation, this equates to potential demand for 1.5 million sq ft of additional office space. Clearly, a significant level of new demand for office space in the South East.
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