Reply to: AZ to close R&D at Alderley Edge

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

It's the free market at work. Companies will move away from London and the SE as it becomes harder and more expensive to find people down here or willing to relocate, which for most ordinary folk will be impossible because of the property prices. Good to see IMO and long may it continue.

This is exactly my thought - I am willing to work pretty much anywhere in the UK except for London. I have now realised that whatever rate I am paid there will not cover the costs/headache/depression associated with working there.

[doodab]

It's the free market at work. Companies will move away from London and the SE as it becomes harder and more expensive to find people down here or willing to relocate, which for most ordinary folk will be impossible because of the property prices. Good to see IMO and long may it continue.

[rootsnall]

Indeed some of them did go to other countries! But a lot of other roles are shifting from London to other parts of the UK - you get the benefits of keeping workforce in the UK but at a much lower cost than in London.

Agreed, I think there has been an increase in IT sites in the North West, appears to be that way in my game.

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

Yeah, to another country lol....

Indeed some of them did go to other countries! But a lot of other roles are shifting from London to other parts of the UK - you get the benefits of keeping workforce in the UK but at a much lower cost than in London.

[northernladuk]

A lot of companies are moving their research and tech centres away from the South East because of the costs involved, so this is not necessarily true at all. Barclays for one are trying to move away from their high cost locations to the lower costs ones...

Yeah, to another country lol....

[Doggy Styles]

A lot of companies are moving their research and tech centres away from the South East because of the costs involved, so this is not necessarily true at all. Barclays for one are trying to move away from their high cost locations to the lower costs ones...

That might be true, I was just putting it out there and asking the question really.

I have no stats, just recall of the odd companies and public services doing it.

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

Not to worry. The BBC have moved up north.

Are we moving nearer and nearer to:

North=public sector
South-East=private sector

A lot of companies are moving their research and tech centres away from the South East because of the costs involved, so this is not necessarily true at all. Barclays for one are trying to move away from their high cost locations to the lower costs ones...

[Sysman]

AstraZeneca

Thanks.

[eek]

Who are AZ?

Google isn't much help here.

AstraZeneca

[Sysman]

Who are AZ?

Google isn't much help here.

[BolshieBastard]

Surprised as I was at Charnwood a few years ago when they closed that. Moved a lot of resource to AE. There was a lot of talk at the time of R&D being off-shored to you know where and that AZ was effectively becoming a UK shell company with a HO in the UK and everything else distributed.

A former friend worked on R&D IT projects at AZ so I would presume IT is affected. It also ties in when she said it was a good time to try and move into other sectors.

[Waldorf]

Not to worry. The BBC have moved up north.

Are we moving nearer and nearer to:

North=public sector
South-East=private sector

Agreed, but very sad and worrying.

[Doggy Styles]

Not to worry. The BBC have moved up north.

Are we moving nearer and nearer to:

North=public sector
South-East=private sector

[GB9]

You with them at the moment? Won't affect the IT will it?

I'm sat on a very lonely bench at the moment and have been a while.

Wasn't sure from the press story I saw if they were just culling R&D at Alderley Park or closing the site completely so don't know the answer to your question yet. I've had a quick look and can't see anything that clarifies it.

Last time I worked for AZ I was in Charnwood and much of the IT was being done at Tytherington at the manufacturing site. A couple of stories mention relocation of some staff to there which wouldn't be bad as its only a few miles.

[BoredBloke]

It's in Cheshire not Manchester

Ok, but it was still one of the few large companies based in the North West who used contractors - even if the rates were