INSURANCE and investment group Friends Provident has announced expansion plans in Manchester which will increase the workforce from 300 to 500 by the end of the decade.

The Group, which currently bases its Manchester operation at 28 and 55 Spring Gardens, has taken a lease on six floors of the Express Building in Great Ancoats Street, Manchester.

The building - built in 1936 with a distinctive black glass exterior - was part of the city's distinguished newspaper history for many years. It has now been comprehensively upgraded and refurbished.

Friends Provident General Manager Roger Hallett said: "Manchester is already an important centre for our new business administration and has been an excellent recruitment area for the quality of staff we need. We will now be able to recruit new staff on a gradual basis, which is good news for Greater Manchester."

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