No10 North opens for business at GCHQ’s Heron House

Heron House has been home to GCHQ’s operations in the North West since 2019. It’s a central base enabling teams to collaborate with start-ups and innovators at the heart of the region’s thriving technology scene.

The hi-tech premises enable GCHQ to use cutting-edge technology and technical ingenuity to identify and disrupt threats posed to the safety and security of the UK, while also drawing on the talents of companies and individuals in what is one of the most vibrant and diverse cities in the UK.

GCHQ’s director Anne Keast-Butler commented: “We’re delighted to welcome the new Prime Minister and the No10 North team to Heron House in the heart of Manchester. Heron House has become a hub for innovation and technical expertise, contributing to an already thriving technology scene across the North West of the country.”

Keast-Butler added: “Our intelligence, cyber and science teams work here, alongside our other UK hubs, to help to keep the country safe, resilient and prosperous. We look forward to working with No10 North and the growing list of Government partners in the region.”

Situation room

No10 North will serve as the Government’s new ‘situation room’ for growth. It brings the levers of local economic growth and devolution together under one roof for the first time.

The Prime Minister is expected to work from No10 North each week so that decisions about the country’s economic future will no longer exclusively be made in Westminster. Other ministers will also operate from No10 North on a regular basis.

Andy Burnham commented: “For 40 years, power and resources have been sucked into the centre. Too many communities have felt forgotten, without the attention and investment they deserve. No 10 North will change that by putting more power into every postcode across the entire country.”

The Prime Minister continued: “It will be the ‘situation room’ for making Britain better. The place we use to take power out of Westminster and put into the hands of people at a local level so that they can turn things around. The days of Whitehall resisting devolution are over for good.”

Security implications 

Much of the focus on No10 North has understandably been on the political implications. However, there are also important infrastructure and security considerations that have so far received little attention.

Lucy Ketley, sales and marketing director at ATG Access, explained: “Andy Burnham’s ‘place before party’ vision and proposals for establishing a No10 North in Manchester represent more than a political shift. They could fundamentally change how the city’s infrastructure is planned and protected if significant Government functions are relocated.”

Ketley continued: “For decades, London has naturally attracted the greatest investment in physical security because it’s home to the UK’s principal political institutions, Critical National Infrastructure and centres of Government. If Manchester becomes a second political hub, its security requirements will inevitably evolve alongside that increased national significance.”

Further, Ketley observed: “Physical security isn’t simply about protecting buildings. It’s also about creating resilient public spaces where people can move freely, while safeguarding Government assets, transport networks and surrounding communities. Security has to be designed into places from the outset rather than retrofitted once risks emerge.”

Additional layer

According to Ketley, Manchester’s regeneration over the past decade has rightly focused on transport, housing and economic growth. A greater concentration of Government departments and public institutions, though, would add another layer to that evolution, requiring planners to consider hostile vehicle mitigation, secure public realm design and work on protective infrastructure as part of future developments.

“If the UK’s political geography changes,” noted Ketley, “the security landscape will need to change with it. The conversation should begin early, ensuring that Manchester can continue to be both an open and welcoming city as well as one that’s appropriately protected as its national role grows.”