Location of new GCHQ site in Manchester revealed
We reveal the location of our new secure site in the North West of England
The hi-tech Manchester premises will be at the heart of the nation’s security, using cutting-edge technology and technical ingenuity to identify and disrupt threats to the UK.
Hundreds of staff will eventually be based at the site which is due to open at Heron House, in Manchester City Centre’s Albert Square later this year.
Director GCHQ Jeremy Fleming said:
“Opening our new Manchester hub is a unique and exciting opportunity to draw on the talents of one of the most diverse cities in the UK, in a superb city centre location.
“This is a major event for GCHQ and I am particularly delighted to be able to announce it in our Centenary year. It will create hundreds of high calibre jobs for people who will have a vital role in keeping the country safe.”
The Manchester premises will extend our network of sites in the UK, which currently sees a headquarters in Cheltenham, and offices in Bude in Cornwall, and Scarborough. In 2017, the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), which is part of GCHQ, opened its new headquarters in London Victoria.
Mr Fleming added:
“The world is changing at an unprecedented rate. That change is driving extraordinary opportunity, innovation and progress. It’s also unleashing amazing complexity, uncertainty and risk.
“If we want a security and intelligence mission fit for our second century, it’s crucial we keep reinventing – which is why our new Manchester facility will be vital to our future success.”
We work alongside MI5 and the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) to keep Britain safe. Our heritage goes back to our beginnings at Bletchley Park, where codebreakers helped wartime intelligence efforts.
The ingenuity and problem-solving of our wartime founders is still abundant today in how our people help to counter online and real-world threats from nation states, criminal groups, terrorists, and individuals.
Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council said:
"GCHQ performs a vital role keeping our country safe and we look forward to welcoming them to the heart of Manchester's Civic Quarter, opposite the town hall. Their arrival, which will create hundreds of new jobs and opportunities for local businesses to work alongside them, underlines Manchester's position as a leading European digital city and centre for innovation and research. We're already seeing substantial investment in the cyber-sector and having GCHQ's cutting edge technical expertise here can only help stimulate this sector.
"The Council has worked closely with GCHQ to support this move and I'm sure this constructive partnership will continue as they begin this new chapter."
Throughout this year we've been celebrating our Centenary with a number of special events – building to the 100th anniversary of our formation on 1st November 2019. We have already released The GCHQ Puzzle Book II to raise money for the charity Heads Together, seen the Red Arrows fly over our Cheltenham HQ, worked with the London Science Museum on a ground-breaking exhibition, and marked our first home at Watergate House with a commemorative plaque unveiled by Her Majesty the Queen.
As part of GCHQ’s move to the North West, the organisation is committed to investing in local schools, universities and businesses. For that reason, it recently launched a 16-week mentorship programme for start-up businesses in the area.
