Old North Shields pub receives £200k funding for office space 'makeover'

A North Shields pub has been unveiled as the location of a new corporate HQ for accountancy firm, Blu Sky.

The 100 pub - known locally as the ‘Tun’ - has been given £200k investment to be transformed into a new office space.

The pub has been in existence for decades, and operated under a number of different guises before losing its licence and closing in 2014. The pub will now be completely renovated and launched as the revamped headquarters for Blu Sky.

Jon Dudgeon, partner at Blu Sky, said: “We’ve been based in North Shields since day one and our steady expansion over the past 10 years inevitably led to our current offices in Northumberland Square being unsuitable for the needs of our 20 staff members.

“We’ve been searching for new office premises for quite some time but could never quite find the kind of space that suited our type of business.

“I walk past the Tun every day and could see that it had real potential to support a move from social space to business offices with the right vision and investment.

“Blu Sky is a very forward-thinking company and we like to challenge the accepted business model and service expectations of a traditional accountancy firm. Our new offices needed to reflect this and transforming a former pub certainly fits the bill.”

The offices have been designed by Blake Hopkinson Architects and are currently under construction by North East building firm, JD Joinery and Building Services through its commercial building division.

Blu Sky has seen steady growth in recent years due to an expanding portfolio of businesses seeking the firm’s progressive approach to accountancy services.

The team helps startups, established businesses and freelancers on their journey to occupy a unique position among a select number of firms worldwide to be a platinum partner of cloud-based accountancy software, Xero.

Jon continued: “A large proportion of our clients operate in the technology sector. They joined us at startup stage several years ago and have gone on to become established firms and we have worked with them through that scale up process.

“About 60 per cent of our clients are North East-based with a further 40 per cent based in the South. This is something we are actively looking to support with the design of our new office.”

He added that Blu Sky will be aiming to retain as much of the pub’s original character as possible, including its wooden bar as the central feature of the new office space.

He concluded: “We’re pleased to invest in the future of our business in North Tyneside and contribute to regeneration in this part of North Shields as the perfect place to locate our HQ.

“Bringing back to life a building that has been a key feature of the local area for a long period of time is a real bonus in our plans. It’s safe to say that the whole team is already looking forward to unveiling the new office premises in the summer and welcoming visitors and clients to enjoy the new-look surroundings of the ‘Tun’.”

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