Whitehall officials offered move to No 10 North in Manchester

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Construction of the Digital Campus in Manchester will not be completed before 2032 By Judith Moritz , Special correspondent  and  Daniel Wittenberg , senior producer Published 10 minutes ago Civil servants based in central London have been offered relocation packages to encourage them to move to the North of England, the BBC understands. A new branch of Downing Street - known as No 10 North - is already up and running, according to a source close to new PM Andy Burnham. The initial location will be Heron House in central Manchester, in the same building which houses offices for the intelligence service GCHQ. Specialist police officers have been seen guarding the building. It is likely that the longer term base for No 10 North will be at a new government "Digital Campus" which is under construction in the Ancoats area of Manchester. It is not due for completion until 2032. Few details about the new branch of Downing Street have been officially confirmed. However, a good indication of what it could look like comes from a new report, released on Tuesday. The blueprint has been authored , external by the Re:State think tank which Burnham was involved with until he stepped down as mayor of Greater Manchester. Burnham's 'Manchesterism' got him to No 10 - but will it work for the UK? Published 4 days ago Who's in Andy Burnham's cabinet? Published 4 hours ago New 'No 10 North' plan will rebalance power in Britain, Burnham promises Published 29 June It sets out a possible recruitment plan that would bring in new hires from across Greater Manchester and the wider North of England. In total, the report suggests around 300 staff should be employed within 18 months. It proposes transferring teams from Whitehall departments, including the Treasury, Cabinet Office, and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government – all of which are now being led by secretaries of state from the North of England. Whitehall officials willing to move to Manchester have been told they will be offered relocation packages, the BBC understands. It's also likely there will be a significant movement of staff from Andy Burnham's former mayoral team at the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). The BBC has been told that at least three senior figures are understood to have agreed to work at No 10 North. Some GMCA staff expressed surprise at only finding out their colleagues would be moving after seeing them on TV greeting the new prime minister in Downing Street. The Re:State blueprint also suggests that there should be a secretary of state responsible for No 10 North, supported by a junior minister based there, although nothing has yet been announced by Burnham. Formal details of some of the changes are expected to be revealed later, in the House of Lords, and as government appointments continue to be made. Sign up for our Politics Essential newsletter to keep up with the inner workings of Westminster and beyond. Related