Agenda item

To select an option for office transformation to be developed into a full business case.

a)     Having regard to the views of the Corporate Management Committee, as set out in the report, Cabinet selects Option 3 - Basic Rationalisation, as its preferred option for office transformation;

b)     subject to a) above and approval of the 2017/18 budget by full Council in February 2017, the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Enforcement and Community Safety, be delegated to enact the development of a business case and all aspects of the implementation of Cabinet’s preferred option if the business case delivers annual on-going revenue savings of at least £0.100m and can be delivered within the specific capital budgets included within the 2017/18 estimates and forecast for 2018/19;

c)     Cabinet requests that the office transformation works should deal with the maintenance backlog and that any remaining maintenance backlog be dealt with as a matter of priority; and

d)     Cabinet further requests that Officers review the potential for the disposal of the freehold of the Westleigh House site as part of the project.

There was submitted a comprehensive report by the Portfolio Holder for Enforcement and Community Safety (Report A.6), which requested Cabinet to select an option for office transformation to be developed into a full business case.

Cabinet was aware that the Portfolio Holder for Enforcement and Community Safety had established a working party for Transformation and Assets which had considered an initial appraisal of options for office transformation prepared by Officers. The Portfolio Holder had subsequently recommended that the option most likely to address the various issues was a rationalisation of existing buildings and concentration of main office facilities in Clacton-on-Sea.

The full appraisal considered by the Portfolio Holder and his Working Party was attached as Appendix A to item A.6 of the Report of the Portfolio Holder for Enforcement and Community Safety.

Cabinet was informed that the Corporate Management Committee had considered the outline of the proposals at its meeting held on 28 November 2016 and had recommended (in summary) that Cabinet:

·                Selects Option 3, basic rationalisation, as its preferred option;

·                Seeks to ensure all maintenance backlog is resolved within the project or promptly thereafter; and

·                Requests that Officers reconsider the disposal of Westleigh House as part of the project.

Members were aware that the essence of the options were::

1:         Do nothing – This can’t really be an option but it is useful as a baseline to measure the other options against.

2:         Current actions – Effectively sticking at the point we have currently reached.

3:         Basic rationalisation – Condensing into existing Clacton sites and selling others.

4:         Refocus at Weeley – Selling the bulk of Clacton sites and constructing a new building at Weeley.

5a:       Officer/Member split – Staff moving to Clacton sites and retaining Weeley Main Building as a democratic centre.

5b:       Officer/Member split - Staff moving to Clacton sites and building a new democratic centre at Weeley.

6a:       Clacton Civic Quarter – a new building on Carnarvon Road and retaining the Town Hall

6b:       Clacton Civic Quarter – a larger new building on Carnarvon Road and Releasing the Town Hall

7:         Colchester Borders – A new building to be constructed near to Colchester with potential for cross authority sharing.

Having considered the information provided and the views of the Corporate Management Committee, it was moved by Councillor G V Guglielmi, seconded by Councillor Turner and:

RESOLVED that

a)    having regard to the views of the Corporate Management Committee, as set out in the report, Cabinet selects Option 3 - Basic Rationalisation, as its preferred option for office transformation;

b)    subject to a) above and approval of the 2017/18 budget by full Council in February 2017, the Chief Executive, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Enforcement and Community Safety, be delegated to enact the development of a business case and all aspects of the implementation of Cabinet’s preferred option if the business case delivers annual on-going revenue savings of at least £0.100m and can be delivered within the specific capital budgets included within the 2017/18 estimates and forecast for 2018/19;

c)    Cabinet requests that the office transformation works should deal with the maintenance backlog and that any remaining maintenance backlog be dealt with as a matter of priority; and

d)    Cabinet further requests that Officers review the potential for the disposal of the freehold of the Westleigh House site as part of the project.