University agrees deal to occupy more than 24,000 sq ft of office space in the biggest letting in Liverpool city centre so far in 2025. Tony McDonough reports
Agents at CBRE have secured 24,360 sq ft letting with Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) at City Square in Liverpool.
In what is the latest office letting in the city centre so far in 2025, LJMU has agreed a three year lease on the fourth floor accommodation at the building which is located on the corner of Tithebarn Street and Moorfields.
This space will offer temporary accommodation for teaching staff and students during the £12.5m transformation of the university’s Henry Cotton Building. This project will begin in October and is scheduled for completion by July 2027.
This is a piece of good news for Liverpool city centre’s office market which is seeing multiple deals agreed despite a chronic lack of grade A space. Last week LBN revealed there had been 15 deals totalling 51,600 sq ft in the second quarter of 2025.
LJMU’s agreement sees it take the final available floor in City Square which is also home to Liverpool’s civil and family courts. It offers occupiers facilities, including a private roof terrace and cycle storage.
Andy Byrne, director of CBRE’s office agency team in Liverpool, said: “It has been a privilege to work with the team at LJMU to secure accommodation at City Square, a significant deal in terms of significance and scale.”
Alongside the City Square deal, CBRE also acted for LJMU in a deal to sell the Jo Makin drama building to the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts for an undisclosed sum. The 13,551 sq ft building on Hope Place in Liverpool was used as ancillary space.
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Mark Askem, director of estate development at LJMU, added: “We are pleased to have secured space in City Square to provide high-quality temporary accommodation while we redevelop the Henry Cotton Building.
“City Square is in an ideal location within our City Campus, making it easily accessible for our students, staff and visitors.
“Our contractors are currently remodelling our leased space in City Square to meet our specific requirements and enable us to deliver high quality teaching, learning and research from September 2025.”