Virgin Media O2 has opened its new North West headquarters in central Manchester, moving into the Island development on John Dalton Street, just off Deansgate.
The multi-million-pound site will house around 1,100 staff, with the operator taking roughly half of the building under a 10-year agreement as it prepares to exit its Wythenshawe office when the lease expires in early 2026.
Teams relocating to the new base include Virgin Media O2’s multi-skilled customer service operation, including specialist support handling complex enquiries such as bereavements and assistance for vulnerable customers.
The opening comes alongside renewed network investment across Greater Manchester. Over the past 12 months, the operator has upgraded 65 mobile sites across the city region, boosting 4G and expanding 5G coverage across more than 14,000 postcodes.
Virgin Media O2 said it has also invested more than £100m (around €116m) in recent years to expand and upgrade its broadband footprint in the region, with nearly 1 million homes and businesses in Greater Manchester now able to access its gigabit services.
The company said the upgrades form part of O2’s Mobile Transformation Plan, which will see around £700m (around €812m) invested this year to future-proof the network.
Alongside infrastructure spending, Virgin Media O2 is extending its digital inclusion work in the region through its partnership with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, committing to donate a further 1,000 refurbished smartphones via the Greater Manchester Tech Fund. The operator said the activity sits within its wider plan to donate 12,000 devices from its supply chain in 2025, delivered via the Community Calling partnership with Hubbub and the National Databank. It added the scheme has rehomed 26,000 smartphones to date.
Rob Orr, Chief Operating Officer at Virgin Media O2, said the new HQ will provide a “modern, sustainable space” for collaboration, while ongoing mobile and broadband upgrades are intended to keep Greater Manchester at the forefront of the UK’s digital economy.
