Building work deal struck on Santander's new state-of-the-art £150m office hub in Milton Keynes

The eight-storey £150m Digital Hub will be built on land bound by Elder Gate, Midsummer Boulevard, Grafton Gate and Silbury Boulevard adjacent to Station Square. The site is currently in use as a car park

Billed as a "world class" workplace which will even boast a rooftop running track, it will consolidate Santander’s offices within Milton Keynes to create a new campus for 6,000 employees.

Construction company John Sisk has agreed with developer Osborne+Co to build the hub in what is the biggest building contract signed since the Covid-19 outbreak

Construction will begin on site immediately and the work will take 30 months to complete.

Specialist contractor Byrne Bros is delivering the £41m piling, reinforced concrete frame and groundworks packages.

Architect LOM’s design for the building comprises four blocks connected by three atria and includes two basement levels

The campus will include, a fitness centre, cycle storage, and a rooftop walking and running track for employees to use..

The building will be known as ‘Unity Place’ following a staff competition, chosen for the way it represents the bringing together of people from local businesses, Santander employees and the wider Milton Keynes community.

Nathan Bostock, chief executive of Santander UK, said: “Once complete, the campus will be a state-of-the-art workplace which reflects our culture and our vision for the future. It will be a world-class home for Santander which both our colleagues and the local community can take pride in.”

Iain Stewart MP for Milton Keynes South said: “This investment is a huge vote of confidence in MK and will keep us at the heart of technology and innovation. I look forward to working with Santander to see this exciting project delivered.”

Leader of MK Council, Pete Marland said: “We’re delighted that Santander’s innovative plans are coming to life, which will see yet another major international business bring its central headquarters to Milton Keynes.

“The new HQ will complement our ambitious proposals for Central MK – including our world-class university MK:U, pioneering work and leisure spaces, and new affordable homes.”

Features of the planned new office include:

An open ground floor with world class facilities available to members of public. These include: Bookable town hall space for community, education and wider Santander employees events, as well as space that will be offered to local businesses and community organisations including an ‘Urban Market’ providing a variety of food and drink;

There will be a Santander bank branch combining traditional banking facilities with modern, digital services, and range of health facilities including a fitness centre, cycle storage, and an employee rooftop walking and running track;

Parking for over 900 cars and an additional 560 secure cycle parking spaces located on the ground floor and basement levels.

The office will be an environmentally sustainable building designed to achieve BREAM Excellent and WELL ‘Gold’ Certification, a measure of the building’s impact on health and wellbeing of its occupants.

Its day-to-day operation of the building will be supported by a dedicated ‘campus app’, allowing users to book and manage facilities, keep up to date with upcoming events and for the community to engage with the building.