Amazon has announced plans to close its first UK warehouse in Milton Keynes, ending nearly three decades of operations at the site which opened in 1998.
The move forms part of a broader £40 billion investment programme across the UK between 2025 and 2027, which includes the construction of four new fulfilment centres and additional delivery stations nationwide.
All 590 employees at the Marston Gate facility face consultation as the company prepares to relocate operations to a new £500 million fulfilment centre in Northampton, located 18 miles away.
New Northampton Centre
The Northampton site is scheduled to launch in May with an initial workforce of 1,400 people. The facility’s staffing levels may expand to 2,000 over time, nearly four times the current headcount at Marston Gate.
According to Amazon, the new centre will feature thousands of robots and modern amenities designed to enhance both operations and the working environment for staff.
Employee Consultation
A collective consultation launched on Wednesday will involve all workers at the Milton Keynes facility. The company has stated it will prioritise support for employees through the transition period.
Staff members can choose to relocate to the Northampton centre or request transfers to other Amazon sites across the UK. The company has pledged to review all feedback before making final decisions on the site’s future.
An Amazon spokesman said: “We’re always evaluating our network to make sure it fits our business needs and to improve the experience for our employees and customers.”
The spokesman added: “Today we’ve announced a consultation on a proposal to close our fulfilment centre in Milton Keynes and to offer employees an opportunity to transfer to our brand-new site in Northampton, a larger, state-of-art building which will employ up to 2,000 people, or to other Amazon sites.”
Sortation Centre Unaffected
Not all Amazon operations in Milton Keynes will be impacted by the changes. The Magna Park sortation centre will continue operating with its workforce of 1,100 employees unaffected.
That facility handles parcels from national fulfilment centres for onward distribution along regional delivery routes.
End of an Era
The Marston Gate facility has served as a key logistics hub for storing, packaging and dispatching millions of products since becoming Amazon’s first warehouse in the UK in 1998. The site anchored the company’s early expansion in Britain and provided decades of local employment.
The investment programme reflects what Amazon describes as adaptations to customer demand and operational reviews across its UK network.
