Cross party backing for plans to move 2,400 staff out of Herts County Council HQ

PROPOSALS to move thousands of county council staff out of County Hall have been cautiously welcomed by opposition councillors.

Currently there are around 2400 staff who are ‘based’ in the council’s Hertford HQ.

But a post-pandemic move to ‘hybrid’ working means that on a typical day there are now fewer than 500 people in the building.

As a result, council chiefs have drawn-up plans to move staff to the council’s office campus in Stevenage – which they say could cut costs by up to £3m a year.

Meanwhile a small part of County Hall – including the council chamber – would remain in use, as a ‘democratoc and civic hub’.

The proposals will be considered by a meeting of the council’s resources and performance cabinet panel on Thursday (july 6) – with a final decision expected later later in the month.

But speaking in advance of the meeting, Liberal Democrat and Labour group leaders have given a cautious welcome to the proposals.

Nevertheless both say there are questions that need to be answered and concerns that need to be addressed.

Leader of the Liberal Democrat group Cllr Steve Jarvis says there is sense in better utilising the office space at Farnham House, in Stevenage – which is itself only 53 per cent occupied on a typical day.

But he says more attention needs to be paid to the future of the Hertford site – and the practicalities of using the two sites in this new way.

“The council owns the building in Stevenage and is not fully utilising it. It’s sensible to make better use,” he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

“[County Hall] is a nice old building, but very unsuitable to work in – with small rooms and long corridors.

“Our concern is the county council will be split over two sites and officers will have to go over to Hertford to meet with councillors.

“But we have no problem in principle with moving to Stevenage.”

Leader of the Labour Group Cllr Nigel Bell also cautiously welcomed the proposals.

But he said there was a need for further information to address councillors’ concerns.

He said he accepted that if Stevenage offices were fully modernised and had proper facilities, they may be the best place to go.

But he said they would be seeking further information – which would include plans around the preservation of the more historic parts of the building.

“We understand this is an opportunity of saving money – and it will mean major change,” he said.

“We need to see a bit more about the preservation of County Hall and the council chamber and the rooms around there.”

The proposals are the latest phase of the county council’s ‘Our Workplaces’ programme – which has looked at occupancy and working conditions, costs and sustainability.

They highlight the recent investment in the Stevenage site and the opportunities for ‘alternative uses’ of County Hall, ‘that could deliver benefits to HCC and Hertford as a town’.

They also suggest that the move would support the council in its aim to make its own operations carbon neutral by 2030.

The proposals will be discussed by a meeting of the county council’s resources and performance cabinet panel on Thursday (July 6), starting at 10am.