Vitality to move into Nationwide building in Richmond Hill

Vitality will cease operations from the decades old Marshall Point building in Richmond Gardens and relocate into the nearby Nationwide building at Richmond Hill – as both companies adapt to changing work patterns.

A spokesperson for Vitality told the Echo: “Vitality will move its Bournemouth operations to Portman House, the Nationwide building, later this year.

“Our move to Portman House will provide Vitality with a new and modern working environment that offers our employees high quality work spaces, designed around our hybrid working model.”

Vitality Health Insurance building at Richmond Hill in Bournemouth

Staff have been informed about the move and no job losses are believed to have been incurred. 1,400 people work for Vitality Health across three sites in London, Stockport, and Bournemouth.

The Marshall Point building, originally occupied by Zurich Insurance in the 1990s, has been home to Vitality since 2014. However, in the years before this, it was home to Vitality Health’s predecessor companies Standard Life and Pruhealth.

The leasing of office space also shows changes to the way Nationwide is working, with the company saying the pandemic had “fundamentally changed” the way it works.

A spokesperson for Nationwide Building Society said: “Since the pandemic the way we work has fundamentally changed, with colleagues splitting their time between working from home and the office.

Nationwide building in Richmond Hill, Bournemouth, with the Vitality building in the background (Image: Newsquest)

“This hybrid approach is something we are committed to and we have now taken steps to ensure our office space is being used effectively, with the right facilities for colleagues to serve our members.

 “We have leased out four floors at our Bournemouth Admin Centre to Vitality Health Insurance. Nationwide remains on the remaining four floors. We’re committed to Bournemouth and have invested in the property to create spaces for more collaboration, ensuring it is fit for the way our colleagues want to work today and in the future.”

Portman House has been home to Nationwide in Bournemouth since 2007 following the merger with the local Portman Building Society.

Vitality has been further approached to comment on whether the Marshall Point building will be sold.