Torfaen council is proposing to make use of existing buildings and office space, while sharing accommodation at Gwent Police headquarters as it prepares to leave County Hall by March 2012.
The interim strategy, which will be considered by the cabinet next week (18 May), proposes using a mixture of existing accommodation and sharing office space with public service partners, while expanding the council’s Alternative Workplace Strategy to enable greater flexible working for staff.
The County Hall building, which Torfaen shares with Monmouthshire has major structural problems which would be too costly to repair. The costs of bringing it up to a suitable standard for long term accommodation are so significant that both councils are committed to leaving the building within the next two years.
The closure of County Hall means Torfaen council needs to accommodate up to 625 staff in its interim accommodation strategy which, on a ratio of 7 desks to 10 staff means a requirement for 438 desks. Officers have identified potential space for more than 400-500 desks across the borough, including, sharing accommodation with the Police, space at the Civic Centre in Pontypool and the Neighbourhood Services site in New Inn while a refurbished Pearl House in Pontypool is also likely to be part of the proposals subject to satisfactory agreement with the property’s landlord.
The proposal to share office space with Gwent Police in Croesyceiliog on a temporary basis would allow the Council to vacate by March 2012 while leaving options open for the future to maintain a strong administrative presence close to Cwmbran in collaboration with other public sector partners.
Key to the strategy’s success is the expansion of the council’s Alternative Workplace Strategy which uses mobile technology to enable staff to work ‘anytime, anyplace, anywhere’. The strategy will play a key part of the new proposals by creating a ratio of 7 desks for every 10 staff initially and could be reduced even further in the future.
There remains much work to be done around the detail of the proposals in particular costs and staff locations.
Councillor Bob Wellington, leader of Torfaen council, said:
“These are changing times for public services in the UK, and while we cannot predict the future, it is clear that there is a need for greater collaboration between councils, police and health services. This makes the proposal to share accommodation with Gwent police a natural progression from both a financial perspective and also improving services for residents.
“The proposals in this report address the exit from County Hall while making the best possible use of taxpayers’ money and council resources particularly during the current economic climate. With public sector budgets facing significant pressure, these proposals demonstrate to residents our shared commitment to focus public resources on delivering and protecting the services that matter to them.”
