East Devon District Council casts the net for new office locations

A call has gone out to a range of local and regional land agents to put forward proposals on potential sites for a new office location.

This follows the Cabinet and Council decisions that Knowle is neither fit for purpose nor a financially sustainable option for the Council Headquarters and that other locations must be examined.

Honiton and Cranbrook sites have been explored to test  the viability of alternative locations for the Council to move to. Now that the decision has been made to move, the Council wants to hear about other sites in the district that might be suitable. The Council is clear that no decisions have yet been made and  there is a window of opportunity for other sites to be considered. This will allow the Council to examine all the advantages and disadvantages of each site before narrowing down its options.

Council Leader, Paul Diviani says: “We are keen to make sure we have fully explored all the options available. At our stakeholder event on 26 July we heard suggestions about a number of other places that the Council might move to and we were clear that we would consider all the options and weigh up the pros and cons before coming to a shortlist.

“Equally, the Council is also going to look at how it can be even more accessible to residents and businesses across the district.  The relocation of its HQ is part of the Council’s work to provide outstanding services to all.  Most of our customers prefer to contact us by phone and increasingly on-line.  We will not only be moving office but changing the ways we work to increase access to the Council and strengthen our availability in our towns across the district in line with local needs and expectations."

As part of the management process of the office relocation, an Executive Group consisting of selected Cabinet members, senior officers and the project manager has been set up to keep track of the details of the project and ensure a firm grip is kept on costs.

The Executive Group will review the details for all site options. These will then be examined in detail  and, if negotiations go well, then preferred options will be put before Cabinet before Christmas.