The Bank of England, known affectionately as the ‘Old Lady’ of Threadneedle Street, was founded in the City of London by Royal Charter in 1694. Currently the Bank performs a high profile role of stability and influence in the nation’s economics, entrusted with the authority to set monthly base interest rates.

The Soane and Baker building and the Grade 1 listed façade remain a powerful symbol of that stability, and behind those substantial walls the Bank has succeeded in developing a working environment of openness and transparency.

In the high profile financial sector, the Bank wanted to create an enhanced environment for its staff, but was determined to maintain its sense of tradition and its legacy. The refurbishment of the Bank’s Threadneedle Street headquarters, to create open plan spaces and high quality facilities for staff, was a key facilitator to change. By opening up the interior environment, the Bank improved not only the working conditions for its staff, but it also encouraged a modern and more open way of conducting its business.

The considerable scale of the programme necessitated breaking the brief down into manageable phased projects that met the client’s overall business needs. Adding to the enormity and responsibility of the refurbishment were factors such as security restricted access, the city-centre land-locked site and little or no storage areas, yet the Bank was to remain occupied and fully operational throughout the works. The significant risk of the works disturbing the Bank’s core business and affecting its stringent security regime required mitigation through careful sequence and logistical planning.

We co-located the whole project team in the Bank itself for five years – a significant demonstration of commitment by all parties to the project. We empowered each consultant and trade package contractor to work collaboratively to achieve project objectives, whilst maintaining strong links to their employer organisations off-site. The Bank received the dual benefits of a dedicated on-site team aligned with client values, yet with the support and resource of their own central organisations.

The dedication of the client’s representatives, their day to day involvement, and the care they extended to the project team made all this possible. The whole team’s focus, commitment and creativity in finding solutions and moving forward was the key to success: the means of bringing the Bank safely through this significant period of change.