The Mayor of the Borough of Reigate & Banstead, Brian Stead, and MP for Reigate, Crispin Blunt, opened the building, unveiling a plaque and cutting an Osborne cake especially created for the occasion.
Osborne also marked the occasion with donations to the Mayor’s Charity Fund, which supports the Surrey Deaf Children’s Society, Surrey Air Ambulance and Princess Alice Hospice; and to Mr Blunt’s nominated charity, the St Mark’s Overseas Aid Trust.
Osborne took the new building on London Road to create new headquarters that encouraged openness and better communication between its sector teams. It is now home to 240 people, largely from the firm’s old Reigate and Redhill offices but also bringing together others based at Osborne’s other UK offices.
Osborne improved the building for its team by adding a new storey with floor to ceiling views of Reigate Hill and creating an atrium at the front of the building both to enlarge the office and to bring more light into its space. The offices also include a suite of meeting rooms on the ground floor, a breakout and café area for staff and areas for activity based working including project rooms and specialist tables for working with plans and other large construction-related documents.
As a result of the move Osborne will save more than £500,000 each year in running costs while operating from a higher specification space.
The works were undertaken by Osborne’s commercial team under the eye of its Development Director, David Sarson, and Logistics Director, Colin Brewer.
Andrew Osborne, Deputy Chairman of Osborne and son of the firm’s founder Geoffrey Osborne said: “We are very proud to have been based in this part of Surrey for the last 18 years and bringing together our offices was the next step towards meeting our aims for the company. As well as creating a more modern space, the new building has been designed in a way that will encourage everyone to share resources and knowledge across all our business sectors – which ultimately means we can serve our customers better.
“We have had a positive year, despite the current economic climate, and see this move as a way of further strengthening our team and positioning us to take advantage of the opportunities ahead.”
The Mayor, Councillor Brian Stead, said: “The Council was delighted that Osborne found such a prestigious head office in the heart of Reigate. We are keen on creating a commercial environment in which businesses can thrive in the Borough. I was particularly grateful for the donation to my charities. They are in much need of extra funding.”
Crispin Blunt, the MP for Reigate, said: “I am delighted that this highly successful family firm has concentrated itself in new offices in Reigate. Osborne already has four decades of presence in the Borough and to have an important construction company headquartering here for the foreseeable future is a great statement about the strengths and attraction of Reigate as a place to live and work.”
The firm also has offices near London Bridge, Milton Keynes and Chichester.
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