Fit-out of £35m Spine begins

Overbury and CBRE have started the fit-out of the Royal College of Physicians’ northern headquarters within a 160,000 sq ft office under construction in Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter. 

The 14-storey building, designed by AHR Architects, is located within the £1bn Paddington Village development, part of Liverpool’s 450-acre Knowledge Quarter.

RCP will take 70,000 sq ft across seven floors of the building, which is due for completion in spring 2021.  

The RCP, which represents 37,000 doctors across the world, is to occupy the building’s lower and upper floors, while the remaining seven storeys will offer a range of workspaces aimed at health, technology, science and education occupiers. 

The Spine will provide RCP with facilities for medical examinations and assessments, educational courses and conferences, an exhibition space and offices for staff. 

Being built by Morgan Sindall Construction, the Spine topped out in January.

The Spine was designed by AHR Architects

Oliver Thomas, senior director and head of CBRE’s northern building consultancy team, said: “The Royal College of Physicians responds to the need for more education and research across the UK and upholds the RCP’s strategic vision to benefit members, fellows and partners in its commitment to improve patient care.” 

Peter Knight, managing director of Overbury Northern, added: “RCP at The Spine is a unique project for Liverpool and for Overbury. We have been working with CBRE and the RCP team to help deliver a world class Northern headquarters which will be a benchmark for quality and construction excellence in the Knowledge Quarter. Liverpool.” 

The volume of commercial space leased within the Liverpool City Region in 2019 fell by more than 30% year-on-year to 568,000 sq ft, below the five-year average of 638,000 sq ft, according to a study.