July 3, 2009updated 06 Jul 2009 9:49am

58% of BBC management say no to Salford move

Almost 60 per cent of the BBC middle management due to move to Salford in 2011 have said they are not willing to relocate.

A second round of voting last week resulted in a 42 per cent acceptance rate. It follows an earlier ballot which found that 15 out of 32 senior managers were willing to make the move to the north-west in two years’ time.

An estimated 1,400 roles are expected to relocate from London to the new MediaCity complex in Salford. A further 800 staff from BBC Manchester are also due to move to the new offices.

The departments that are due to move include BBC Radio FiveLive, BBC Sports, Children’s and parts of the Future Media and Technology team.

BBC North director Peter Salmon said: “While the overall percentage is high for a relocation of this size, I do understand that some people are not able to join us, and I completely sympathise with those colleagues for whom it has not been possible.”

The BBC said it would make “extensive efforts” to redeploy members of staff that are not able to make the move. If redeployment is not possible then redundancy might be offered.

The final round of voting – among less senior staff – is due to take place by 30 September. The relocation is scheduled between April and December 2011.