Lloyds Banking Group has put its Leeds call centre in South Bank up for sale, as it looks to consolidate its office footprint in the city.
The bank has instructed JLL and CBRE to sell the freehold for the 3.8-acre site, which includes a three-storey 128,533 sq ft office block and 117 car parking spaces.
Although a price is not being marketed for the Westbank offices, market sources estimate that the guide price is in the region of £20m.
It is understood Lloyds will still use the office as its call centre up until 2021, before relocating staff to its second office in Leeds in Lovell Park. It does not plan to cut any roles as a result of the move.
A development brief has been worked up by Lloyds for the site, which includes an office and residential-led development across four plots, as well as hotel, retail, and food and beverage space.
These buildings would range between seven and 14 storeys. Leeds City Council is in discussions with the bank about the masterplan for the site.
The site is opposite Bridgewater Place and sits within the council’s South Bank regeneration framework, which encompasses 253 hectares of land south of the River Aire in Leeds.
Last month, Lloyds chief executive António Horta-Osório confirmed that the bank is reviewing its office footprint after polling its 65,000-strong workforce, which revealed that two-thirds of its employees were keen to work more regularly from home.
“As more of our colleagues are able to work flexibly and remotely, we are becoming less reliant on office space,” said Horta-Osório. “And also the type of office space we will need in the future is likely to change to reflect changing working styles. We will be working to understand what the future of work and the office looks like, which will also help to inform our decision.”
The bank is already working on a plan to consolidate its offices into six strategic hubs in London, Scotland, West Yorkshire, the North West, West Midlands and the South West.
To send feedback, e-mail lucy.alderson@egi.co.uk or tweet @LucyAJourno or @estatesgazette
