United under one roof
Scrutton Bland who specialise in accountancy, insurance broking, tax and financial advice, have offices in Colchester and Diss as well as a new lease on their Ipswich headquarters on the corner of Crown Street and High Street. Formerly Churchill House (home of the eponymous insurance company), this prominent building has undergone a major refurbishment to emerge reincarnated as Fitzroy House, named after the adjacent street.
The property, which extends to about 15,700 sq ft, has been subject to an extensive refurbishment programme including new roof cladding, new lift , air conditioning system , windows, raised floors, suspended ceilings, network cabling , WC facilities, kitchens and new partitioning in order to create the ideal surroundings for Scrutton Bland to operate from.
It was a move for their Colchester branch to new premises on Colchester Business Park back in 2007 that convinced the firm’s partners that they needed to expand in Ipswich to more modern ,efficient open-plan offices.
Seven years on, they have leased their ideal home, and the weekend of July 19th and 20th saw a huge number of staff volunteering to assist in the mammoth move although the paint was still drying in their new building. They opened again for business at 9am on Monday 21st July.
Scrutton Bland traces its roots back to the 1930s through numerous amalgamations of financial concerns. Most recently, in 1990, the Ipswich firm of Scrutton, Goodchild and Sanderson united with Bland Fielden in Colchester to create the current incarnation, which employs over 150 staff spread across the three offices in Ipswich, Colchester and Diss.
They had occupied one of their Museum Street office buildings since it was built in 1938, so transferring the accumulated paperwork, much stacked in the cellar, was no simple task.
“It has been a massive upheaval,” said Tax Partner Jason Fayers, who heads up the tax department for the whole firm, and oversaw the relocation. “But we are delighted now to be in enjoying the huge benefits of our modern surroundings where we feel we have room to grow comfortably.”
Alistair Mitchell, Head of Fenn Wright’s Commercial Department in Ipswich, said the search had been long but ultimately successful.
“The search for suitable premises took some considerable time but it was essential for Scrutton Bland to ensure that no compromises were made in terms of either the location, specification or quality of their new offices. Having identified and successfully negotiated the acquisition of Fitzroy House, Fenn Wright’s commercial agency and building consultancy teams worked closely with Gotelee Solicitors, Barefoot & Gilles Architects and the landlords agents in order to ensure that the transaction was completed as quickly as possible. We are sure that Fitzroy House will prove to meet Scrutton Bland’s business objectives and have been very pleased to have had the opportunity to assist and advise our clients in relation to their relocation” he said.
Fenn Wright handle the sale, letting and acquisition of all types of commercial property throughout East Anglia. Find out more