Jagex moves Cambridge HQ to Granta Park office hub

SOFIAH NICHOLE SALIVIO

News Editor

Jagex has moved its Cambridge headquarters to One Granta at Granta Park, leasing about 12,200 sq ft in the building.

The relocation places the maker of the RuneScape franchise on BioMed Realty’s 120-acre campus, alongside life science, technology and research tenants. One Granta is one of 15 buildings on the site and is already more than 60 per cent leased.

The move marks a change of setting for a company best known for long-running online games rather than laboratory science, highlighting how Cambridge landlords are seeking occupiers from a broader innovation economy. Granta Park has historically been associated with life sciences, but demand across the cluster is widening, according to BioMed Realty.

Jagex has taken space in a recently built office with BREEAM Excellent and EPC A ratings. The building includes a staffed reception, electric vehicle charging and parking. Occupiers also have access to campus facilities at The Apiary, including a gym, 25-metre heated pool and spa, squash and tennis courts, a nursery, a restaurant and outdoor green space.

Workplace shift

The deal also reflects a wider push by employers to use offices to support collaboration, recruitment and staff retention as hybrid working becomes more established. In Cambridge, where competition for skilled workers remains intense across software, biotech and research, workplace quality has become a more prominent factor in property decisions.

Jagex described the relocation as part of an investment in its workforce as it enters its 25th year. It said the new headquarters had been designed with modern technology and collaboration areas for staff working on site and in hybrid patterns.

“Jagex’s decision to relocate its headquarters to Granta Park reflects the campus’s appeal to a broader range of innovation-led businesses across the Cambridge innovation cluster. While Granta Park has long been recognised for its leadership in life sciences, we’re increasingly seeing businesses from the wider innovation economy choose our campus for its high-quality workplace environment and exceptional amenities,” said Carl Williams, director, leasing & asset management, UK, BioMed Realty.

Cambridge base

Jagex has long been associated with Cambridge’s games industry and is one of the city’s better-known consumer technology businesses. Its RuneScape franchise has attracted more than 300 million player accounts worldwide across PC and mobile, according to the company.

The new office also supports the company’s environmental, social and governance goals. Jagex said the building’s sustainability credentials and the wider campus environment formed part of the case for the move, alongside practical workplace considerations.

“This year we celebrate our 25th anniversary, and we are incredibly excited to begin our next chapter at One Granta. More than a new headquarters, it is a deliberate investment in our people. We have built an environment equipped with modern technology and purpose-designed collaboration spaces so that everyone can do their best work, whether on site or working in a hybrid pattern.

“Our new home also reflects Jagex’s commitment to our environmental, social and governance goals. One Granta is a modern, sustainable workplace designed to promote wellbeing and connectivity, and it sits within Granta Park’s wider campus, with its excellent facilities and green surroundings on our doorstep,” said Keeley Vaughan-Davies, chief people and culture officer, Jagex.

For BioMed Realty, the letting adds a games developer to a portfolio built primarily around life science and technology real estate. The group says it owns and operates 17 million sq ft of laboratory and office space across major innovation markets including Boston/Cambridge, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, Boulder and Cambridge in the UK.

One Granta’s leasing progress may also signal occupier demand in the Cambridge office market, where newer buildings with stronger environmental performance and broader amenities are drawing attention even as older space faces pressure. At Granta Park, Jagex now joins a tenant community spanning research-led and commercial businesses across the wider innovation cluster.