Royal London, the UK’s biggest mutual insurer, wants to extend and refurbish its offices in central Edinburgh which will become its Scottish headquarters.

The offices at the corner of Thistle Street and Queen Street, off St Andrew Square, will be remodelled by Morgan Architects to form 108,000 sq ft of office space and other facilities for up to 1,600 employees.  

They are currently spread across the city, with offices in Haymarket and Waverley Gate. The move to the Thistle Street site marks a return to St Andrew Square where the business has had a presence since the 19th century.

Royal London acquired a number of Scottish brands, including Scottish Life and Scottish Provident.

Peter Josse, group chief operating officer, said: “As one of the largest financial services employers in Edinburgh, we are thrilled to advance our plans to transform our former offices into a future-proofed, best-in-class Scottish headquarters.

“This development will complement our new customer service centre at Waverley Gate which will open later this year.”

Royal London is in the top 30 mutuals globally, with assets under management of £173 billion, 8.7 million policies, and more than 4,500 employees.

Guy Morgan, from Morgan Architects, added: “Morgan Architects has been working with Royal London to repurpose these buildings, creating the potential to extend the existing buildings through a judicious new build and a reinterpretation of the office which meets the needs and aspirations of this prominent site.

“Our design will retain, repair, reconfigure and upgrade as much of the current buildings as possible while also creating a new sustainable office fit for contemporary purposes.”