GSK To Move Out of Headquarters in Brentford

Pharmaceutical company announces plans to split its operation in two

GSK's current headquarters in Brentford. Picture: Maxwell Hamilton

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GSK Planning Major Expansion in Brentford

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Pharmaceutical giant GSK, a major employer in the west London area, has announced plans to move its headquarters out of the building it currently occupies in Brentford.

The group is forming a new UK-listed Consumer Healthcare company which will build a new global campus and innovation centre in Weybridge.

This is part of a wider strategy to split the business into two separate operations - a global pharmaceuticals and vaccines company with an R&D approach focused on the science of the immune system, human genetics and advanced technologies, and a Consumer Healthcare company with annual sales of more than £10 billion, including nine global brands.

The Weybridge campus, which is due to open at the end of 2024, will house the global headquarters for the new Consumer Healthcare business, including an innovation centre (made up of R&D laboratories and the Consumer Healthcare Shopper Science lab) and the company’s global support function teams based in the UK. It will be home to around 1,400 employees.

Whilst the development of the campus is ongoing, and at the point of separation of the two companies – expected in mid-2022 – Consumer Healthcare teams will leave GSK House in Brentford and will move to a temporary headquarters in Weybridge, at a site close to but separate from the company’s existing facilities in the area.

Brian McNamara, CEO Designate, GSK Consumer Healthcare said, “This investment in a new cutting-edge campus in the UK will bring together our first-in-class teams as we drive towards our ambitions as the world’s leading consumer healthcare company. Today’s announcement is an important step as we prepare for separation, marking an exciting new beginning for New Consumer Healthcare.”

The non-consumer healthcare side of the business will remain in Brentford at 980 Great West Road at least until the end of 2023 but will then move to a new building. The company says it will identify an appropriate site that meets the needs of the new organisation, with the search based in the same area as GSK’s current headquarters.

GSK have said that they will engage with Hounslow Council and base their search for a new permanent HQ offices in the same area, to minimise disruption to staff, and will undertake an extensive global search for an alternative occupier for the Great West Road site.

Leader of Hounslow Council, Councillor Steven Curran, and MP for Brentford and Isleworth, Ruth Cadbury, have responded to the announcement by Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) regarding changes to their business operations and a relocation from their HQ offices at 980 Great West Road, Brentford.
The consumer healthcare company announced today (11 Oct) that they are moving their commercial division to Weybridge in Surrey by the end of 2022. Their Research and Development and Vaccines Business will remain in the current premises until 2023.

Leader of Hounslow Council, Councillor Steve Curran, said, “GSK have been a landmark presence and valued employer in our borough since 2002. We understand their need to find more suitable accommodation to meet the needs of their new business model and ways of working , and will be working closely with them to mitigate the impact of the decision on the community at an already very difficult time.

“In conjunction with Ruth Cadbury MP, we will be working out the exact implications of this announcement, and the best ways to support everyone involved. Renewing our local economies and supporting residents and businesses remains a continuing priority, which this announcement makes even more crucial.”

Member of Parliament for Brentford and Isleworth, Ruth Cadbury MP, said, ‘‘The news that GSK will be leaving their site on the Great West Road will have a huge impact on our local area. GSK are a major employer locally, and I know that many people rely on their Brentford site, both for their job and also for the wider investment it brings in for businesses locally. This news comes at a time when Hounslow is facing a turbulent economic future due to the coronavirus pandemic, and decline in international aviation.

“I will be meeting with GSK and working with Hounslow Council to ensure that local jobs are protected, and to support our local economy during this move.’’

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October 12, 2021