Government agency signs up for Manchester office development

The Government Property Agency (GPA) has signed a lease agreement with developer Ask Real Estate and its JV partner, The Richardson Family, for a new 12,000m² office development on First Street in central Manchester.

The new hub will host some 2,500 civil servants, including over 700 roles which will be relocated from London to Manchester.

Under the government’s Places for Growth programme, 22,000 Civil Service roles will be moved out of London by 2030.

The Manchester First Street Hub will open in 2025 and provide a new home for civil servants currently based in the Piccadilly Gate office. Piccadilly Gate will be demolished to build a new HS2 station at Piccadilly.

The Hub will provide office accommodation with different types of areas for people to work and collaborate, as well as enabling efficiencies through interoperability and digitally-enabled office space.

Clive Anderson, GPA’s Director of Capital Projects said: “The Government Hubs and Whitehall Campus Programme will provide a smaller, better and greener estate which supports the Government’s ambition to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

“The hubs create modern, inclusive environments where departments can be co-located in shared buildings across the UK. This supports the Government’s Levelling Up agenda and Places for Growth initiative, encouraging the movement and creation of jobs outside London.”

John Hughes, Managing Director at Ask Real Estate said: “Attracting the GPA to the estate, further establishes First Street as one of the most sought after business destinations in the region. We have worked over a number of years to create a community and a neighbourhood with aspiring amenity and established talent. This news will enable us to realise and progress our ambition to accommodate 10,000 jobs by 2028 and create a sustainable urban campus.”