Cabinet Office Minister Alex Burghart has, today, opened a new government hub in Peterborough with government staff from a number of departments and agencies being permanently housed there.
Members of staff from the Department or Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Home Office’s Passport Office make up the more than 1,000 people that are to be working from the new facility. Situated at Fletton Quays, an area currently undergoing a regeneration worth £120 million, the project is part of the government’s programme to establish hubs across the country, moving 22,000 roles out of the capital and into communities around the United Kingdom by 2030.
Other cities around the county that have had hubs announced include:
- Glasgow
- Belfast
- Newcastle
- Leeds
- Manchester
- Nottingham
- Cardiff
- Birmingham
- Bristol
At the opening, Cabinet Office Minister Alex Burghart said:
“It’s fantastic to be in Peterborough to open our brand new Government Hub. This is a very important day for the city.
“As today shows, this Government is investing in Peterborough and the East of England to create jobs and opportunities for the long-term.”
Over 900 roles have already been moved out of London and into the East Midlands and East of England, with one of the departments increasing their footprint being the Ministry of Justice. The region is to be on the receiving end of a civil service recruitment campaign next month, with this helping the government to utilise the talent pool in the area.
Lord Murray, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office, added:
“Being part of this new Government hub continues to reinforce HM Passport Office’s long-term commitment to the city of Peterborough.
“Quay House offers brand new, purpose built, facilities that will help us delivery increasingly high standards of service for our customers in the East and Midlands for many years to come.”
The new hub is also set to generate more than £340 million of private sector revenue for the region. Director of Capital Projects at the Government Property Agency, Clive Anderson, said:
“Quay House in Peterborough is the Government Property Agency’s first new build Hub. It will provide inclusive, flexible, digitally-connected workspaces to support greater productivity, create cost efficiencies and enhance carbon reduction. This has been achieved by consolidating four remote sites into one new city centre building, with 1,000 civil servants now supporting local businesses.
“We are all extremely proud to deliver this new Hub in Peterborough, and to be delivering the Government Hubs Programme in support of key government initiatives such as Levelling Up, Civil Service Reform and Net Zero. I welcome our clients and customers to their new place of work.”
