Corporate accommodation strategy

Who in Camden will benefit from the Council’s plans to re-locate to new offices?

The new building will include a customer care centre, which will help us to improve the delivery of services and our customers’ experience. There will be a public library on the ground floor and state of the art leisure facilities, including a swimming pool, that will be open to all those who live, work, study and volunteer in the borough.

Without any additional cost we will be able to fund the construction of  purpose built offices that meet modern environmental standards on a high value site. In the long term this will deliver best value to the council taxpayer while bringing significant community benefits.  The move will also contribute to our efforts to reduce our carbon footprint and achieve greater energy efficiency in the future.

This is a self-financing solution. This means that the sale of the other buildings (including the Town Hall Extension), together with other efficiency savings will pay for a new building on the Kings Cross Central site.

Why are we selling council offices?

Council staff currently work in a range of buildings across the borough many of which are out of date, inefficient and expensive to run. Without the accommodation strategy proposals, it is estimated that it would cost the Council in excess of £77m over a 25 year period to refurbish and maintain these buildings. This would include £20m to refurbish the Town Hall Extension plus substantial rental and running costs associated with temporarily relocating staff and services off-site. The council would need to find additional budget to do this, which is simply not available.

We estimate that cuts in national government spending will leave us with a budget gap of between £80 and £100 million over the next three years. Making the most efficient and cost-effective use of the properties we own is a key plank in our strategy to secure services in the face of the bleak economic environment. The council has a responsibility to council tax payers to make the best use of the borough’s assets.

Why aren’t you just updating the Town Hall Extension?

It is estimated that the Town Hall Extension requires in excess of £20m worth of investment to refurbish the building including major mechanical and electrical work – to replace its electrics, heating and lifts. This would also mean that staff in the building would have to be relocated to a number of temporary accommodation buildings offsite which would be extremely expensive and disruptive to services.  The Council would need to find additional budget to do this, which is simply not available.

The accommodation strategy provides a self-financing solution. This means that the sale of the other buildings (including the Town Hall Extension), together with other savings, will pay for a new facility which meets the modern requirements of Camden and is more sustainable and efficient to run.

What about the Camden Centre and the Old Town Hall, is this being sold? What about Bidborough House?

The strategy which was approved by Cabinet agreed the sale of the Town Hall Extension, 156 West End Lane, Cockpit Yard, 98-100 St Pancras Way, and the Crowndale Centre (with the library to be re-provided in an alternative property) and ending current leases in Clifton House and Bedford House.

The Old Town Hall is mainly a building used for civic functions, Council and committee meetings and is listed. It was not included in the scope of the programme agreed by the Cabinet.

Bidborough House has had recent investment and refurbishment to a high standard so this would also be inappropriate to include in this strategy.   

Will the Council become a leaseholder on the new site?

The new building will come with a 999 year lease which would mean that the value of the asset would appreciate over time. In the long term the Council will be in a better financial position.

Is there a planning brief for the Town Hall Extension site?

There is no formal planning brief for the Town Hall Annexe site. We are working with advisers to prepare information for prospective buyers of the site which clearly sets out the development parameters based on the Council’s own planning guidelines. This will also take into account discussions with local stakeholders including Argyle School to alleviate their concerns about any potential development.

What is the timeline for the sale of the Town Hall Extension and the Council’s move to new offices?

The estimated completion date and move to the new building is 2014. In order to minimise costs and disruption, the sale of buildings such as the Town Hall Extension will not happen until services have moved into the new building.

The timing of sale of the other buildings is programmed for 2014 but will be subject to further review. This will also remove any costs of decanting staff into temporary office space and moving services twice.

How much will the Council pay for the new building on the Argent site?

At the moment we are giving the go ahead to work up the design of the new centre, agree a price with the land owners for a long lease, and start the process of looking at options for the sites we will close and dispose of. So at the moment in order to get best value for taxpayer’s money these details have to stay commercially confidential until the deal has been done. However this project will be self-financing, which means that the sale of the other buildings (including the Town Hall Extension) together with other efficiency savings will pay for a new building and reduce the Council’s spending on repairs and maintenance in the future.

What is going to happen to the St Pancras library?

As an important council facility for the local community it is of the utmost importance that there is continuity of services between the closure of the Town Hall Extension and opening of the library in the new building in 2014. This will be a key priority in the plans which are developed to move services and work will be done to ensure that library users are aware of the changes and will be involved in the evolving design of the new facilities in Kings Cross.