Subject to the relevant permissions from local authorities, the firm plans to transform both the interior and exterior of a centrally located office building constructed in the 1960s.
“It has the potential to revitalise the Carr Lane streetscape and give KC’s building an attractive, 21st-century presence in tune with the company’s position as a national player in digital communications,” reckoned Hull City Council’s regeneration portfolio holder Rick Welton.
“The office was built in the sixties, and while parts of it have been updated and improved over the years, a significant investment is now needed to create a more modern working environment,” noted KC’s chief executive, Kevin Walsh.
Of primary importance to the local communications giant is creating an office space fully suited to its workforce, but the company is also aiming to incorporate a range of energy-saving and sustainability measures.
It is also hoped that by redesigning and essentially reconstructing the building’s exterior, KC’s headquarters will help make the local area more attractive to businesses considering relocating to office space in Hull.
If given the go-ahead, work on the £4 million refurbishment will start next year and should be completed in the spring of 2012.
KC can trace its routes back more than a hundred years, and the Hull-based communications firm was the first to offer a broadband service to customers in the UK.
Elsewhere in northern England, the UK’s Green Building Council (UKGBC) recently praised the way sustainable office space developments are helping revitalise the commercial property market in Manchester.
Editor’s notes: In 2016, KC’s parent company, KCOM Group Plc, moved all of its brands under the single KCOM name.
As of May 2023, KCom listed its East Yorkshire office as Carr Lane on its website.
In the 2020/21 financial year, KCom posted revenues of £263 million.
In May 2026, it was reported that a Canadian firm was considering purchasing KCom.
At the time, Northleaf held a major stake in rural broadband operator Quickline, which served parts of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. As KCom dominates the Hull region, a merger between KCom and Quickline could create operational efficiencies, since the two fibre networks have limited geographic overlap.
In June 2026, KCOM listed two Hull offices on its website – 37 Carr Lane, Hull, HU1 3RE and Kingston House, Salvesen Way, Hull, HU3 4XQ.