Blackpool’s £100m civil service hub on track for 2025 completion

Around 3,000 staff will call the 215,000 sq ft King Street office home as of next year, providing a “significant boost” to the town centre.

The Civil Service Hub, a key part of Blackpool’s ongoing £350m Talbot Gateway development, is being delivered for the council by Muse and contractor VINCI Building.

After work began last February, the £100m, seven-storey scheme has now reached its highest point, with construction on track to complete next year.

Alan McBride, technical director at Muse, said: “This highly sustainable building will help to provide a significant boost to the town centre’s economy.

“We’re helping to forge a new chapter for the town, while remembering the culture and history that have contributed to Blackpool’s iconic status.”

He added: “The long-standing partnership between Muse and Blackpool Council continues to help build a brighter Blackpool through regeneration that’s fit for the future, and with the Civil Service Hub topping out, it’s rewarding to see another milestone ticked off as part of our programme to transform the town.”

Designed by Make Architects, the office scheme features terracotta façade panels; a nod to Blackpool’s architectural heritage.

The building has been designed in a way that aims to minimise its total carbon footprint and is targeting a BREEAM ‘Excellent’ accreditation.

Gary Hughes, regional director for VINCI Building, said the scheme would set “a new benchmark in sustainable construction”.

In addition to providing a sustainable new hub for civil servants, it is hoped the project will have a regenerative impact on Blackpool town centre.

Cllr Lynn Williams, Leader of Blackpool Council, said: “Redeveloping the area around Blackpool North train station is a major part of our plans to make Blackpool better, creating jobs and opportunities for local people.

“If you look around town, you can already start to see new private businesses using the opportunity of extra workers on their doorstep and investing in new or improved premises and creating jobs for local people, which is fantastic.”

The office building is the latest part of the Talbot Gateway regeneration project to come forward.

Schemes already delivered include the 125,000 sq ft Number One Bickerstaffe Square council office, a Sainsbury’s supermarket, and a refurbished 650-space multi-storey car park.

A new four-star 144-bedroom Holiday Inn hotel and Marco Pierre White New York Italian restaurant – connected by improved transport links to Blackpool’s popular tourist attractions – are now open too, whilst plans have also been approved for a multiversity campus for Blackpool and the Fylde College.

Elsewhere, full planning permission is being sought by Muse and Blackpool Council for a new £45 million, 52,950 sq ft workspace off Talbot Road which would be home to over 1,000 employees, and plans for a new multi-storey car park are also expected to be submitted later this summer.