WPP this week opened its first UK campus outside of London in Manchester. The company said the new facility (built on the former Granada Studios site) signals its intention to invest in the city and grow its business in the country outside of London.  

The new campus will house 550 people from agencies EssenceMediacom, Cheetham Bell, Code Computerlove, Wavemaker, Cloud Commerce Group and Kinetic, all of which have had a longtime presence in the city.  

Several WPP shops new to the area will also be housed there, including Ogilvy Health and VMLY&R Health.  

The eight-story, 67,000-sqare-foot office space was designed by BDG architecture + design, a WPP company. The design features inclusive elements such as accessible toilets and dedicated mothers’ rooms, and social hubs. 

Examples of investing in the area include partnerships with organizations like The ScaleUp Institute, with plans to support and foster small businesses in Manchester. The campus will also partner through a variety of volunteering opportunities with local community groups such as The Trussell Trust and Mustard Tree, who are dedicated to addressing food waste, and preventing homelessness and poverty respectively. 

“This move further demonstrates our commitment to facilitate collaboration, fuel creativity, and give clients access to the breadth and depth of WPP talent in one location.” said Karen Blackett OBE, UK President of WPP. "Manchester has always been a city brimming with growth and creativity and we wanted to be at the heart of that. The city is also home to a beautiful fruit salad of people and we need to reflect that in our organizations in order to generate growth.” 

The new Manchester Campus is WPP’s 36th campus globally and is part of the company’s plan to have 85% of its people in campuses worldwide by 2025.