Development of brand new Government Hub reaches major milestone

The construction of a new Government Hub in Leeds has reached a significant milestone with the topping out of Buildings 7 & 8 at Wellington Place in the city centre.

7 & 8 Wellington Place will become home to the new 378,000 sq. ft. Government Hub, which holds the record as the largest ever office pre-let in Leeds.

The move is part of the Government’s plans for building a strong Civil Service base across the UK, with the Leeds hub accommodating multi-departmental workforces.

Once finished, the fit-for-purpose office space will accommodate HM Revenue and Customs and NHS Digital.

MEPC, the developer and asset manager, celebrated the topping out with a steel signing event. This marked the completion of the steel frame construction, as well as the start of the next phase of the build with the installation of the façade.

The ceremony was attended by representatives from HMRC and NHS Digital in addition to contractor, Wates Construction, and the team at MEPC Wellington Place.

Paul Pavia, head of development at MEPC, said: “The steel signing is always a significant milestone in a building’s development, as it is at this point we can truly see the scale of what’s to come.

“We’re incredibly excited to be welcoming the new regional government hub, and this celebration marks the next phase in its completion. Not only is it fantastic news for Wellington Place, but also the wider city, with the move expected to welcome 6,000 civil servants to the development.”

Dorothy Brown, HMRC’s senior sponsor for the Leeds development, added: “This is a significant milestone in the creation of HMRC’s Leeds Regional Centre. In the space of one year, we have gone from a hole in the ground to a seven storey building and can now start to visualise how the space will work for our people.

“The modern and bright environment will mean they can work collaboratively with other teams, to increase our effectiveness in collecting taxes. In addition, they will also benefit from a great range of facilities and additional activities, which are available to members of the Wellington Place community. I am confident this will become a great place to work.”

Carl Vincent, chief financial officer at NHS Digital, said: “We are hugely excited about our move to the new hub in a couple of years’ time and this is a significant milestone towards that. As one of Leeds’ major digital employers, having the opportunity to consolidate our estate and have our people working collaboratively together under one roof that is designed for modern technology delivery, will provide big opportunities to make us an even more effective and efficient organisation, delivering transformational digital change for health and care.

“We’re proud to be part of this significant investment which underlines our long-term commitment to Leeds.”

Click here to sign up to receive our new South West business news...
Close