British Land has signed an agreement to lease 83,000 sq ft of space over seven floors to Virgin Media O2 at 3 Sheldon Square, W2, its newly refurbished office building at Paddington Central.
The space will act as the telecoms company’s new headquarters.
The deal takes the building to 60% let ahead of its opening in February next year.
The 140,000 sq ft 3 Sheldon Square is currently undergoing a full refurbishment, significantly reducing the embodied carbon in the development through the retention and reuse of the existing structure and materials. The building will be all electric, including the installation of air source heat pumps, which will reduce operational energy demand by more than 40%, well ahead of British Land’s 2030 target to improve building energy intensity by 25%. The refurbishment will deliver a BREEAM Excellent certification and is targeting an EPC A rating.
Head of real estate at British Land Darren Richards, said: “As businesses re-evaluate their workspace requirements in the wake of the pandemic, demand is clearly moving towards high-quality, sustainable space in central locations with excellent amenities. Virgin Media O2’s decision to consolidate its team at the newly refurbished 3 Sheldon Square reflects this trend, and underlines the appeal of Paddington Central and our London campuses to innovative businesses.”
Virgin Media O2 director of property, facilities, fleet and energy Rodney Hogg, added: “By investing in a brand new, connected and state-of-the-art office space, we are creating even better opportunities for our people to come together, work and collaborate. This purpose-built space… offers brilliant connectivity and impressive sustainability credentials helping us deliver for both our people and the planet.”
Paddington Central, which British Land owns in a jv with GIC, is already home to major corporates including Microsoft, Visa and Prudential.
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