Google says it will increase its investment in the United Kingdom by purchasing the Central Saint Giles development in London — the site where many Google employees work — for $1 billion. Based in London’s thriving West End, the company’s investment in this Renzo Piano-designed development shows that Google remains confident in the office as a place for in-person collaboration and connection.
[Photo above: Google’s office building in Central Saint Giles.]
Google now has 6,400 employees in the United Kingdome and will will have capacity for 10,000 employees in the country. This includes a new King’s Cross development in London, which is currently under construction.
Ronan Harris, VP of Google for the UK & Ireland, said in a blog post the company will maintain a hybrid work schedule where employees can come into the office and also work home a couple of days a week.
Over the next few years, Google will begin a multi-million pound refurbishment of the offices within Central Saint Giles to ensure that they are best equipped to meet the needs of the future workplace including team pods, which are flexible new space types that can be reconfigured in multiple ways, supporting focused work, collaboration or both, based on team needs. The new refurbishment will also feature outdoor covered working spaces to enable work in the fresh air.
