The building, known as One Braham, has now opened with nearly all colleagues already working from the site.

Housing around 3,500 colleagues, the new HQ will be another flagship location within BT’s Better Workplace Programme - the largest workplace improvement programme and consolidation scheme of its type ever undertaken in the UK. The programme, which will complete in 2024, will see BT rationalise hundreds of its offices across the UK and establish an estate of future fit, high tech workspaces.

Philip Jansen, BT Group Chief Executive, said: “Our new HQ in London will bring our people together in an impressive and modern environment, transforming the way teams work. 

“We’re really excited to be moving into One Braham. It represents a changing BT, one that is more agile, forward thinking and able to adapt to the challenges and opportunities presented by the acceleration of digital technologies.

“We want our colleagues to be proud of where they work, to feel part of something brilliant at BT. Our new HQ has been designed to support our people, to enable them to be at their best and deliver great results for our customers.”

The new HQ, the supporting regional hubs, revamped contact centres and specialist buildings, are expected to help BT deliver on its ambitions for sustainability, innovation, product development and excellent customer service. The first hub opened in September at Three Snowhill, Birmingham. Work is already underway on major new offices in cities including Bristol and Manchester.

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic seeing many colleagues shift to home working since March 2020, BT still firmly believes in the future of the office.

BT is adopting a hybrid, flexible approach called ‘Smart Working’ where teams will choose how colleagues spend time between home and their office. Shared workplaces are ‘central’ to BT’s future, providing environments for colleagues to come together to connect, collaborate, learn, and develop, build friendships, and share their experiences.

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “It’s great to see BT’s new global HQ at Aldgate opening. It will provide a great boost to the area, and, as workers across London increasingly return to the office, demonstrates how businesses can combine technology and smart ways of working to really benefit their staff.”

The new HQ boasts smart building technology, flexible workspaces, and collaboration areas. There are also a range of catering options including a ground floor café open to the public, world class event spaces, and a large media screen in reception.

One Braham incorporates hot desk facilities where colleagues work in ‘neighbourhoods’ according to their business function.

BT recognises the important role its operations play in local communities, like Tower Hamlets, and the spend by its employees, visitors and partners can support wider regeneration in local areas. The building has a ground floor community space which will be used for community engagement and community projects.

The catering at One Braham, and at the company’s site at Three Snowhill, is run by Lexington Catering, which has partnered with Change Please as coffee supplier.

Change Please is a social enterprise supporting people out of homelessness. The award-winning company provides training, employment paying the Living Wage and support with housing, finances, and therapy to help people experiencing homelessness move forward. Change Please reinvests all profits towards ending homelessness.

Notes to editors

• BT’s former offices in St Paul’s were purpose-built and completed in 1985, one year after the company’s privatisation. Since then, the immense changes within BT and technological advancements across the industry have left the building no longer fit-for-purpose.
• BT will ensure it complies with all the latest guidelines on Covid-19 from Public Health England to ensure colleagues are kept safe in the office. BT has taken all floors of the 18-storey development.
• The interior of the new HQ was designed by architects Sheppard Robson and its interior design team, ID:SR, with a brief that embraces agile working, moving away from traditional office concepts. A focus on wellbeing is woven throughout the design with “community” floors incorporating a café and restaurant, spaces for socialising, and quieter spaces, such as multi-faith and contemplation rooms.
• 99% of the waste generated during the fit out of One Braham was recycled rather than sent to landfill (correct as of September 2021)

The centre in Wilmington Drive has undergone a major revamp to modernise it and create a fantastic workplace for colleagues.

BT says it is now looking to hire 350 new people based at the building, including 100 roles with Plusnet, part of BT Group.

More than 200 people have already been recruited to roles at the location in the last couple of years.

The revamped office has been designed by BT colleagues, for BT colleagues. It features full height windows providing lots of natural light, a new café and restaurant facilities, flexible workspaces, collaboration areas, as well as lots of greenery for plant lovers. It also includes relax and refuel areas and a games area with table tennis, pool and games consoles.

The state-of-the-art building is one of the first of BT’s future-fit offices in the UK to open as part of its ‘Better Workplace Programme’ – the largest workplace improvement and consolidation scheme of its type ever undertaken in the UK.

Nick Lane, managing director for consumer customer services at BT, said: “We’re really pleased to be creating new, permanent job opportunities in Doncaster, a town which has suffered economically due to the Covid-19 pandemic like many others across the country.

“We have a number of posts we need to fill and I would encourage anyone who may be interested to check out our careers website bt.com/careers where more information and details on how to apply can be found.

“It’s a great time to be joining our team at Doncaster, particularly following the exciting refurbishment of the site. It now boasts some of the latest technology and facilities to help our colleagues thrive at work and also relax and unwind during break periods.”

BT says that a number of its colleagues have been working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic, but many are expected to return to the office over the coming weeks and months as Government restrictions are lifted.

BT’s Doncaster contact centre first opened in 1997 and the company says the refurbishment will help transform the way it works, create efficiencies and enable it to better serve its customers.

Last year, BT completed its commitment to answer 100% of its consumer customer service calls in the UK and Ireland – becoming the only major broadband provider to do so – with the aim of providing a more personal and local service to its customers.

Deputy Mayor Cllr Glyn Jones, Cabinet Member for Housing and Business, said: “We are delighted to see BT investing in cutting edge facilities in Doncaster and creating hundreds of new jobs for local residents.

“It’s further tremendous news for the Doncaster economy which has seen a number of major companies announce expansion plans across our borough in recent months. We are fully committed to delivering jobs and growth and our Business Doncaster team continues to work closely with companies to promote opportunities and offer invaluable support.”

Teams based at the Doncaster contact centre will benefit from the fastest full fibre broadband internet connections, as well as EE 5G mobile coverage in the area. BT’s ambition is to increase efficiency and productivity, improving its ability to do the best for its customers. The Better Workplace Programme will deliver a combination of new offices as well as the refurbishment of some existing BT buildings.

The building itself will include multifaith and parenting rooms, and even a ‘bike doctor’ to encourage as many colleagues as possible to travel into work by sustainable transport.

Plusnet will be extending its customer service team to the BT Contact Centre to provide additional support for customers. Yorkshire based Plusnet already has a Sheffield office at The Balance in Pinfold Street.

BT Group plays an important role in the Yorkshire and The Humber economy and is responsible for generating £1 in every £160 produced in the region, according to an independent report. It also generated £1.3 billion to the Yorkshire and The Humber economy in “Gross Value Added” GVA, during the 2019/20 financial year. BT Group employs more than 6,500 people across the region.

BT has given the Mayor of the West of England Dan Norris and BT apprentices and graduates a sneak peek of the company’s new state-of-the-art office in the centre of Bristol, ahead of its scheduled opening in summer 2022.

The brand new 13-storey waterfront development, close to Bristol Temple Meads station, includes a rooftop ‘wildflower meadow’ and a number of terraces with panoramic views, to help promote wellbeing for up to 2,500 colleagues.

The building, Assembly Bristol, is a multi-million pound new development in the Temple Quarter Enterprise zone that is set to become one of BT’s key locations for the UK. Bristol was named in 2019 as one of BT’s strategic locations, with the new office to act initially as a hub for more than 2,000 colleagues in the city and wider region.

Like many businesses, considerable numbers of BT people have been working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic, but many are expected to return to the office in the coming months, as government restrictions are lifted. BT believes that, while technology and connectivity have helped people work remotely, there is still a role for the office to share ideas and to develop effective teams, particularly for the many new apprentices and graduates who join each year.

Each of the new building’s 13 floors is designed with high ceilings and natural daylight in mind, and indoor and outdoor breakout spaces, balconies and large terraces on the upper floors. The building also includes more than 250 cycle spaces and shower and changing facilities.

Commenting on the new building, West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: “It was a pleasure to get a behind the scenes tour of BT’s new Bristol office. The views from the top are stunning. I'm delighted that our city is becoming a key location for the company, cementing our position at the heart of the UK’s digital economy.

“I particularly enjoyed meeting the graduates and apprentices and hearing about the excellent opportunities they are getting for interesting and varied high quality jobs.”

Sinmiloluwa Oke, part of BT's graduate scheme, said: “It was great to be able to get a sneak peek of BT's new building in Bristol. It's a really modern building with lots of cool features like the roof terrace and wildflower meadow. Where you work is really important, so I think this kind of workspace will inspire colleagues and help create a good working environment.”

Nick Speed, BT Group’s director in the South West, said: “This brand new building represents a multi-million pound investment by BT in the Bristol area and will see us increasing our presence significantly in the city in the coming years.

“It was great to have input from some of BT’s young people who are at the start of their careers and see their enthusiasm for the quality workspace we are creating, as somewhere they’d want to work.”

Graeme Paton, BT’s managing director, property and facilities services, said: “Our brand new building in the centre of Bristol is very exciting. It will bring our people together in a modern and collaborative environment, helping us transform the way we work.

“Although many of us have been working from home successfully over the last year thanks to technology and connectivity, we also know that modern office environments are vital. The buildings we work in play a huge part in how we feel and how we collaborate with each other. Our new offices will help us attract and retain brilliant people and we look forward to welcoming colleagues into this great new building when it’s complete.”

Notes

Metro Mayor Dan Norris was given a tour of the building by Nick Speed, BT Group’s public affairs lead for the South West of England. Other guests on the preview tour included BT degree apprentices Harvey Chandler and Caitlin Chinnock, and Sinmiloluwa Oke and Iestyn Harries, part of BT’s graduate scheme.

The exterior of the building is now complete and work has started to fit-out the interior with an anticipated move-in date of summer 2022.

The building is one of the first in Bristol to have the heat supplied by the district heating network, providing heat via a ground-source heat pump, so removes the reliance on gas. There will be no gas in the building. All heating/cooling is supplied via an electric system and aligns to BT’s decarbonisation goals.

BT Better Workplace programme

BT’s Better Workplace programme, first announced in 2018, is the largest workplace improvement and consolidation scheme of its type ever undertaken in the UK. It will consolidate BT Group’s UK footprint of more than 300 locations to around 30. The company has already announced several locations including Bristol, London, Cardiff, Manchester, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Belfast. It also plans to move from its current headquarters in London at St Paul’s to a new 320,000 square foot, 18-storey building near Aldgate East Station later this year.

The new office will be at West Marketgait in the heart of the city centre, close to the waterfront and part of a £1bn regeneration area.

When the building is complete, expected in late 2023, the state-of-the art contact centre will be one of around 30 of BT’s new future-fit offices in the UK, developed as part of its ‘Better Workplace Programme’ – the largest workplace improvement and consolidation scheme of its type ever undertaken in the UK.

The investment will help transform the way BT works, create efficiencies and enable it to better serve its customers. BT currently has an office at Ward Road in Dundee, where around 1,000 colleagues are based today, first opening in 1976. The new building will include what the designers have described as a ‘street landscape,’ with areas for colleagues to socialise while enjoying great views over Dundee and the River Tay.

Teams based in Dundee include those providing customer service support to BT’s full fibre customers and small businesses. Since 2020, BT handles 100 per cent of its consumer customer service calls at contact centres in the UK and Ireland. BT has recruited hundreds of people in Dundee in the past four years.

John Alexander, Leader of Dundee City Council, said: “Today's announcement by BT is a huge vote of confidence in the city and in our plans for the future.

"It is clear that BT shares our vision for a Dundee that has a strong and sustainable economy providing jobs, retaining more graduates and making the city a magnet for new talent, while at the same time offering real choice and opportunity in a place that has tackled the root causes of social and economic exclusion.

"The company will be an integral part of that journey with us and I am delighted that BT sees Dundee as a good place to do business and recruit its present and future workforce."

Jane Wood, BT Group Scotland director, said: “This is exciting news for my colleagues in Dundee and reflects BT’s continued investment in Scotland. As one of the largest employers in Tayside, we know that this investment will be welcomed by many people, not least my colleagues who will be based at this brilliantly designed new office.

“We’re pleased that Dundee, an iconic Scottish city, will remain home to nearly 1,000 frontline workers who help customers right across the UK, every day. My colleagues have done an amazing job ensuring that our customers have stayed connected during the Covid -19 pandemic, with some choosing to remain working on site, while other colleagues have chosen to work from home.

“We look forward to welcoming staff into our new building when it’s complete.”

Michael Smart at Crucible Developments, said: “We are delighted to have secured BT as an occupier. The site is undoubtedly one of the best in Dundee and we are extremely proud of the building our team have created. We hope to commence construction as soon as possible and, once completed, the development will bring a prominent brownfield site back into use and further increase the vibrancy of Dundee city centre.”

Teams based at the Dundee office will benefit from Openreach’s full fibre broadband network, as well as EE’s 5G mobile network which the company switched on in Dundee last month.

BT Group plays an important role in the Scottish economy and is responsible for generating £1 in every £115 produced in the country, according to an independent report. It also generated £1.2 billion to the economy of Scotland in “Gross Value Added” GVA, during the 2019/20 financial year.* BT Group supports more than 12,400 jobs across the nation.

-Ends-

Background:

Under the five-year ‘Better Workplace Programme’, first announced in 2018, BT will consolidate its UK footprint of more than 300 locations to around 30. The company has already announced several other locations including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Ipswich and Manchester, with more to follow. It will also move from its current HQ in London to a new building in Aldgate later this year.

Dundee is a dynamic, modern city, leading one of the largest regeneration projects in the UK. It is one of the principal tech centres in the country, which as well as being selected by industry group Tech Nation as one of the three cities most likely to become a UK tech hub this year, was also named alongside major world cities such as Toronto, São Paulo and Atlanta by multinational tech company Cognizant as one of the world’s top “places of the future”, in a report examining how new technologies will create jobs.

Working with Scottish Enterprise and property company Camlin, part-owned by Dundee property entrepreneur Bruce Linton, Crucible Developments have assembled the site and designed Dundee’s first ever ‘Platinum Wired Scored’ building. This means the building will be the most resilient building in Dundee from an IT and connectivity perspective. The building will also have sustainable credentials, such as a BREEAM Excellent rating, ensuring its impact on the environment will be minimal. The Greenmarket development comprise two buildings providing 76,500sq.ft (7,108sq.m) of offices, prelet to BT; 6,500sq.ft(602sq.m) of café/retail amenities and 16 flats.

Dundee Waterfront is an award-winning £1 billion regeneration project that is transforming 240 acres of land along 8km of the River Tay. Split into five distinct zones, the project has secured more than £750m of committed investment including a £40m investment by Dundee Port to secure offshore wind and decommissioning work. Most infrastructure works have been completed and the build phase is well underway, with a growing community of businesses and residents moving into the Waterfront area. Major projects already completed include the construction of a new railway station, V&A Dundee and Agnes Husband House, the new HQ for Social Security Scotland.

Dundee is home to two universities, is the UK's only UNESCO City of Design and world-class computer games developers, life sciences research and the emerging sectors of cyber security and low carbon industries are driving its economic growth. Dundee is also at the heart of the £700m Tay Cities Deal which will boost economic prosperity in the city and surrounding areas. 

*Gross Value Added (GVA) measures the value of all goods and services produced in an economy. GVA combines wages and operating profits from companies and other organisations. Growing GVA can reflect improvements in workforce skills, productivity, R&D and innovation. The figures for BT show the value added directly through BT's services and additional value generated through BT's suppliers across the nations and regions.

The full BT Economic Impact Report is available at: www.bt.com/reports