ITV is to move into a former BBC building in West London, taking a 13-year lease on Broadcast Centre in White City to bring all staff in the capital into one location for the first time. The move, starting in early 2022, will see further consolidation of ITV on the site previously best known for the presence of the BBC.
ITV already has staff for its daytime programmes based at The WestWorks, another former BBC building in White City, adjacent to Broadcast Centre.
Some leading ITV entertainment programmes are broadcast from nearby Television Centre, the iconic building originally purpose built in the sixties as studios for the BBC, now prominently featured in ITV shows. Many of the offices in the original ‘doughnut’ building have been turned into flats.
The remainder of ITV staff in London are currently based at Gray’s Inn Road and Waterhouse Square in London, following the sale of its offices and studios on the South Bank of the Thames, originally built for London Weekend Television.
The consolidation of premises will contribute to cost savings for ITV. Around 2,000 staff will be moving to Broadcast Centre, where ITV is taking 120,000 square feet of office space.
Broadcast Centre was originally opened in 2004 as the home for BBC Broadcast, now Red Bee Media, an Ericsson company, which provides playout services for broadcasters including the BBC, ITV and Channel 4. It was part of a planned ‘media village’ in West London. The campus site is continuing to be developed, as part of a major regeneration of the area.
Following the disruption of the coronavirus pandemic, which required many staff to work in different ways, ITV has considered feedback from staff in informing its future property requirements. The consistent feedback amongst those whose roles can be done remotely is that the majority favour hybrid working, balancing office-based and remote working.
Carolyn McCall, the chief executive of ITV, said: “Our people have made it really clear to us that they want to build on the positive aspects of their experience over the last 18 months to have a more balanced approach to office based and remote working. That balance will vary from team to team given the kind of work we do and we know that face to face collaboration is crucial for creativity and innovation. We’re looking forward to this new hybrid way of working.”