A Hull charity has relocated to facilitate hybrid working and help its employees enjoy a better work life balance.
Pickering & Ferens Homes, an almshouse charity that manages 1,400 homes across Hull and East Yorkshire, has taken a lease on the top floor of 7 Beacon Way, a modern office building just off the A63 and close to Hull city centre.
The 3,570 sq ft suite is part of The Beacon, a Grade A office development built by East Yorkshire commercial developer the Horncastle Group PLC.
The move leaves just two suites available; the ground floor and first floor office suites of 7 Beacon Way, which are 3,300 sq ft and 3,570 sq ft respectively.
Claire Warren, Chief Executive of Pickering & Ferens Homes, said the move enabled the charity’s 42 employees to work in a much more flexible manner, while still maintaining a strong internal culture.
She said: “We wanted to retain a central base because our identity as a local charity is based on the strength of our relationships with our customers.
“The cornerstone of that is the strength of the relationships between ourselves. You can’t keep a strong company culture built on working together for 30 years if don’t see each other.
“But we are also big advocates of hybrid working and were considering it even before the pandemic hit. It is flexible, works well with our customer-first principals and it means our employees can enjoy a better work-life balance.
“This, along with the effective collaborative working opportunities that The Beacon allows, means our new headquarters will enable us to provide an even better service to our customers.”
Pickering & Ferens Homes has relocated from its former base of the Maltings in Hull city centre, which is currently undergoing conversion into residential apartments.
The charity dates back to 1910 when founding director and prominent businessman Christopher Pickering funded the construction of 12 almhouses in west Hull.
It now manages a portfolio of 1,400 bungalows, flats and retirement living schemes for couples and single people beyond the age of 60, and builds around 25 new homes each year.
Ian Hodges, director of the Horncastle Group PLC, welcomed Pickering & Ferens Homes to The Beacon, where it joins a range of big-named tenants including innovative law firm rradar, the City Health Care Partnership (CHCP), and Netherlands-based logistics business Den Hartogh.
Mr Hodges said: “Pickering & Ferens Homes has been providing accommodation for older people in the city for more than 100 years, ensuring their residents benefit from the best quality of life they can provide.
“As a charity, it is part of the fabric of the city and does a tremendous amount of good work. It is a real privilege to have them relocate to The Beacon.
“Their move leaves very little space available on the site, which is one of a very small number of Grade A office developments in Hull.
“Any companies looking to move into the city would struggle to find more modern and convenient office accommodation with a good ratio of on-site car parking.”
