Agenda item

Work Smart Estates Strategy

Decision:

Cabinet considered the Work Smart Estates Strategy which contained a range of Officer recommendations to consolidate the Council’s office accommodation to meeting the £2.4m per annum revenue savings in the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan.

RESOLVED –

Council Offices at Wycombe Old Library, Wycombe

(1) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to make necessary arrangements to move staff from the Wycombe Old Library to the main Council Offices in Wycombe at Queen Victoria Road.

(2) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants, agree heads of terms, and terms for a leasehold contract, exchange and complete on the letting of all or part of the Council Offices at Wycombe Old Library, in accordance with the financial implications and proposed revenue savings set out in the appendices to the Cabinet report.

Council Offices at Queen Victoria Road, Wycombe

(3) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to reduce operational accommodation as needed to reduce operational overhead in accordance with the provisions set out in the appendices to the Cabinet report.

(4) That the property will be kept in the existing use for the interim period pending the conclusion of the series of actions set out in this report and the appendices and known as phase 1. At the conclusion of Phase 1 a further review of the accommodation need at the Wycombe Offices will be undertaken.

Council Offices at King George V House, Amersham

(5) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants to masterplan the site for re development, realising the opportunity for much needed housing in the Town Centre including affordable housing. As part of the re development, consideration will be given for a future Council presence in the town to facilitate Officer operational desk space, ancillary space, meeting space including space for Planning committee meetings, Environmental Health meetings, Community Board meetings and community access where they are not undertaken online or virtually.

(6) That it be NOTED that for a period of time it might be the case that operations will need to be re located and temporary accommodation arranged for Council meetings and potentially interim office space for staff members. Alternatively, and where there is no obvious local need, Officers would be asked to re locate temporarily to either Wycombe or Aylesbury. The Service Director of Property and Assets is authorised to make such operational changes and agree associated costs. It is further NOTED that the disposal is at least 18 months into the future and the project will involve staff consultation regarding continued operations and potential impact on staff that are based at the Amersham office.

(7) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants to progress the masterplan of the site and make an application for Planning if needed and subsequently agree terms for disposal, agree contracts, exchange contracts subject to conditions and complete on the transaction subject to a further report to Cabinet on the final business case.

Council Offices at the Gateway, Gatehouse Way, Aylesbury

(8) That the Council offices that have been the interim headquarters for the organisation since Unitary be APPROVED as the longer term headquarters for the Council.

(9) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants to consider master planning and preliminary budgeting for a potential extension and this will be considered against the options set out elsewhere in this report regarding the Council’s current legacy headquarters building in Walton Street.

(10) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants and contractors to bring forward the workspace accommodation strategy more widely at the Gateway following the recent successful pilot, in accordance with the financial implications set out in the appendices to the Cabinet report.

Council Offices at Walton Street, Aylesbury known as Walton Street Offices

(11) The Walton Street offices are only partially occupied. The Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants to bring forward the site for master planning, regeneration, development and possible sale.

(12) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to appoint necessary consultants and if required make a Planning Application, agree terms for a potential disposal, agree contracts exchange contracts and complete on a disposal, The disposal would be subject if required to conditions and subject to alternative accommodation being provided for the staff currently based in Walton Street Offices.

Potential Council Offices at Aylesbury

(13) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, toappoint necessary consultants to review alternative opportunities for a smaller office in Aylesbury town centre as set out in the appendices to the Cabinet report.

The Council Offices at Denham

(14) That it be AGREED that the Council offices at Denham that have been closed for operational use for some time will not be re-opened.

(15) That the Service Director of Property and Assets be authorised, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, to seek to surrender the lease with the Landlord or underlet the premises to reduce operational costs for the remainder of the term of the Lease.

General

(16) That the Service Director of Property and Assets, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources, will bring back a periodic report to Cabinet with an update on the strategy set out in this report and the appendices not less than every 6 months for the next two years.

Minutes:

Cabinet considered the Work Smart Estates Strategy which aimed to achieve a reduction in operational estate footprint based on organisational need, a reduction in carbon footprint and would deliver a potential £2.4m per annum revenue savings and £4m capital receipts savings from the operational estate in the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan. The establishment of the unitary council created opportunities to rationalise the office accommodation inherited from legacy councils. Furthermore the organisational use of office accommodation had changed significantly during covid.

The Council’s Work Smart Strategy had been designed to enable the organisation to maximise the benefits of flexible working , whilst ensuring that the Council met the requirements of residents and continued to drive improvements in productivity. The process had already started with Easton Street offices in High Wycombe and Capswood near Denham. As part of a pilot a floor at the Gateway had been redesigned to provide a more flexible space with desks, break out areas, quiet areas and booths for online meetings, one to one calls as well as collaborative spaces to bring teams together.

The report and recommendations covered:-

· the Council Offices at Wycombe Old Library (move staff to Queen Victoria Road and let out the Old Library)

· Council Offices at Queen Victoria Road, High Wycombe (reduce operational accommodation where possible with a future review in phase 2 of the project plan)

· Council Offices at King George V Road, Amersham (to redevelop the site, identify the need for a future Council presence and carry out a staff consultation regarding potential impact of staff moving offices)

· the Gateway, Aylesbury (look at potential for a possible extension).

· the Council Offices at Walton Street, Aylesbury (“the tower block”) (to look at the potential of redevelopment of the site subject to alternative accommodation for staff)

· the Council Offices at Denham (to surrender the lease at lease expiry and underlet in the interim).

There was a supplementary report which provided Member views on the proposed Strategy which was generally supported. The Leader reported that there were no proposals to close the Wycombe office currently. There was an important link with this Strategy and the Customer Contact Strategy to ensure that residents could access the Council through Customer Access Points around the County, some of these were in libraries. The Leader reported that it would be helpful to have a further report on how residents interact with the Council and what they could expect with each point of contact around the County.

With reference to King George V House the Deputy Cabinet Member, who lived near Amersham welcomed the recommendations to ensure value for money for Buckinghamshire residents. However, he commented that it was important to have a Council presence near the High Street in Amersham to provide internet access, emergency assistance and a warm space for residents. Another comment was made by another Deputy Cabinet Member that he supported the Strategy and that there should be a good communication strategy for residents about future plans for offices and Council Access points. A Cabinet Member asked why there was such a long timeline to implement the Strategy particularly in relation to Walton Street. The Cabinet Member for Accessible Housing and Resources reported that it was important to ensure that staff could be relocated appropriately, look at other areas such as a plan for archives which were currently located in the basement and also sort out the certificate of listing for Walton Street. The Service Director reported that this was a realistic timescale and also included the New County Offices. The Leader commented that it was important to look at the retail property nearby so those offices were not vacant for a long period of time. Cabinet Members welcomed the report.