New year, new building as SLC moves into Glasgow headquarters

The Student Loans Company (SLC) has started 2024 in its new headquarters in Buchanan Wharf, reaffirming its commitment to Glasgow, and Scotland.

SLC has been based in the city’s Bothwell Street since its inception more than 30 years ago. But more than 1,000 colleagues have moved into the new six-storey, 75,000 sq ft headquarters on the Clydeside, the final part of the Buchanan Wharf development.

The 20-year lease on the purpose-built space on Clyde Place is a significant investment for the organisation, and the building has been designed to encourage collaboration and provide a modern working environment for colleagues.

Developed and built by Drum Property Group and Graham Construction, the site has followed the UK Green Building Council’s Net Zero Carbon Building – Performance Levels guidelines and will secure a BREEAM Excellent certification. BREEAM is the globally recognised standard for best practice in the design, construction, and operation of sustainable buildings. It’s also received a WiredScore Platinum rating for its digital connectivity.

SLC is working with the Government Property Agency on its UK Government Hubs Programme, which is facilitating the co-locating up to 600 civil servants. The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority will move into the building with SLC in the Spring.

David Wallace, Deputy Chief Executive, at SLC said: “Being able to start 2024 in our new headquarters feels very fitting. SLC has been part of Glasgow for more than 30 years and with more than 1,000 colleagues working in the city, we feel part of the history and fabric of the business community.

“Getting to this point has taken a lot of work but our vision for the office, which was created with our colleagues, has always been to deliver a space that fits the modern working world and we’ve certainly achieved that. It already feels like home.”

The completion of the SLC building represents the final piece in the jigsaw for Drum Property Group’s Buchanan Wharf site, one of Scotland’s largest ever development projects. The new city centre quarter provides a mix of local amenities, cycle lanes and landscaped public spaces on the banks of the River Clyde and is already home to Barclay’s state-of-the-art Northern European campus HQ and the award-winning Solasta Riverside, an 18-storey, 324-apartment residential complex owned by Legal & General.