Bristol-based national law firm TLT has opened the new top floor extension to its landmark One Redcliff Street headquarters – giving staff and visitors an unrivalled bird’s eye view of the city.
TLT’s major refurbishment of its space at One Redcliff Street, pictured below, which started just over a year ago, is due to be finished next summer.
The opening of the new 15th floor – an additional 10,000 sq ft storey which has been added to the 1960s building – has given the expanding law firm a new client suite with some of the best 360-degree panoramic views across the city and beyond.
In addition to the extension – a feat of engineering in its own right – the project also includes a full refurbishment of TLT’s work space, new lifts and a redesign of the extensive lobby area with a new entrance onto Victoria Street replacing the two existing side entrances.
The move is enabling TLT to introduce new areas to promote more agile and collaborative ways of working, including break-out and café areas, quiet rooms as well as meeting rooms with the latest technology to enable teams based across its offices to work together.
The refit also bolsters the building’s sustainability credentials with rooftop solar panels secondary glazing, new LED lighting and improved temperature control, as well as new facilities for cyclists in the basement.
When the work is completed TLT will occupy around 90,000 sq ft on the top floors of the building, which is managed by Aberdeen Asset Management (AAM). The project is being managed by JLL, with building work carried out by ISG and the refit designed by Bath-based interior design firm Interaction.
TLT – one of Bristol’s ‘big three’ law firms alongside Burges Salmon and Osborne Clark – signed a new 10-year lease at One Redcliff Street – its UK headquarters – in January 2016. The agreement was one of central Bristol’s largest single office lettings for many years and ended months of speculation on where in the city the firm would choose for its new HQ.
In the end the firm decided staying put but ‘upcycling’ its office made more sense – particularly as staff like being close to the city centre, Broadmead and Cabot Circus shopping areas and Castle Park.
New developments nearby such as Finzels Reach and Redcliff Quarter, which will both include retail elements, will also bring a new vibrancy to the area.
One Redcliff Street was built in 1964 as the headquarters of paper and packaging manufacturer Robinsons. At the time it was Bristol’s tallest building and was roundly criticised for its ‘brutalist’ concrete facade and the fact it towered over the nearby historic buildings in Redcliffe and Castle Park.
The building, still one of the city’s tallest, is now owned by SWIP (Scottish Widows Investment Partnership). Other tenants including software group SmartFocus, and Amey Rail.
