AstraZeneca unveils The Hub – its new amenities centre for staff and the broader Cambridge Biomedical Campus

AstraZeneca’s new amenities centre, called The Hub, is up and running on Cambridge Biomedical Campus and hundreds of people have been quick to use the facilities.

The purpose-designed site features a day nursery, pre-school, shop, café area and garden that are open to the wider campus community and members of the public, along with a gym, treatment rooms, health screening and occupational health services for AstraZeneca’s employees.

Intended as a place where employees can “collaborate, socialise and unwind”, it was designed by Herzog de Meuron, the Swiss architecture firm also responsible for The Discovery Centre (DISC) – AstraZeneca’s stunning R&D building on the campus, which opened in 2021.

Ruud Dobber, AstraZeneca’s executive vice president and president of the biopharmaceuticals business unit, told the Cambridge Independent at last Thursday’s opening: “Astrazeneca is very committed to the Cambridge area. As a large pharmaceutical company, we are extremely proud to be part of this very exciting ecosystem.

“What is so special about opening the hub is that it’s about the wellbeing of our employees and our scientists.

“I think the facilities here in the new hub – the gym, the classes, the nursery – are absolutely outstanding and will help make sure people can relax and talk to people in an informal way. Hopefully it will also help us to develop and discover many more new medicines in the decades to come.

“Where it is possible, The Hub will be open for the wider Cambridge community. That is part of our commitment to Cambridge’s people and hopefully they will enjoy it.

“I just took a tour and it really looks beautiful. It is world class and I am sure a lot of people will enjoy being here.”

The facilities have already been in high demand, he revealed.

“It is overwhelming. We have already had more than 1,000 people signing up for the gym,” he said. “This morning, we had 200 people using the facilities already. The nursery is already over-booked, so the employees are extremely excited and happy and they are using it, which is a good signal.

“80-90 per cent of the facilities are open already and, in the next few weeks, everything will be fully operational.”

The Hub had already secured BREEAM certification for its environmental measures during the design phase and the team behind it are now pursuing outstanding certification for the post-construction phase, in line with AstraZeneca’s sustainability commitments.

Meanwhile, Herzog de Meuron’s work with AstraZeneca continues.

“They are helping us to build another building, called the South Office building, very close to here,” said Ruud. “So it is not the end of our story regarding the facilities in Cambridge. We are halfway. There is a huge commitment from AstraZeneca and the senior leaders to make this one of the most thriving scientific sites in the world.”

Shaun Grady, chair of AstraZeneca’s UK leadership team and senior vice president, for business development, added: “AstraZeneca is proud to be at the heart of the Cambridge Biomedical Campus, where some of the UK's leading scientists and researchers are driving forward breakthroughs in life sciences.

“Sitting alongside our world-class R&D centre at The DISC, today’s opening of The Hub will offer high-quality facilities for the community and together these will provide our employees with a great place to work that can ignite innovation, unite diverse talent and promote collaboration and wellbeing within Cambridge.”

Nick Kirby, managing director of Cambridge Biomedical Campus Ltd, said: “Cambridge is not only one of the most exciting bioscience hotspots in the world, it also has a vibrant local community that we are committed to supporting.

“With The Hub, we aim to enhance the daily lives of our people whilst also creating meaningful impact for local residents.

“This new space was designed to meet the unique needs of employees and the Cambridge community, providing a welcoming environment for collaboration and social engagement.”

Cambridge Biomedical Campus is now the largest centre of medical research and health science in Europe.

It contributes £4.2bn Gross Value Added (GVA) a year to the UK economy.