CASH strapped Monmouthshire County Council may sell its HQ at Cwmbran, it has been revealed. The authority, said to be £30 million in debt, is set to get a massive cash windfall from the handover of its housing stock to another body. But that is unlikely to solve the authority's cash problems, especially as it has been claimed repairs to County Hall could cost up to £30 million. A series of meetings have taken place in private to discuss the future accommodation for staff and Councillors. Just one of the suggestions being put forward is that officers should work from home, while "hot desking" is another suggestion being considered. At a meeting, members were given presentations by the Chief Executive, Colin Berg, and the Manager of County Hall Facilities Management Company Monitor, both of whom stressed the need to make a decision about future accommodation. The Council last debated this issue in September 2005 and established a Project Board to look at possible options for future accommodation as well as finding the best value option for disposal of the County Hall site. This has now progressed with several possible sites found. Members received a presentation about the state of disrepair of the building and were told that the cost of repair would be £30 million shared between Monmouthshire and Torfaen Councils. The building, built in 1969, was originally intended to house 800 staff, this has now grown to 1300 staff. Members were also told that the current maintenance programme was strictly a risk management programme and that no unnecessary money was being spent on a building which was due to be condemned. Members agreed that investment in schools and roads must come before office accommodation. They also agreed that given uncertainty about the shape and size of Local Government over the next few years it was unwise to plan a straight replacement to reflect the current capacity of County Hall. Members wanted a civic presence in Monmouthshire, and asked that consideration be given to using one of more of the current buildings in the County to create this. Monmouthshire County Council leader, Councillor Andrew Crump said "As members we have a duty to investigate the best working environment possible for our staff as they are our greatest resource and also to provide future accommodation which gives best value for money for our Council Tax payers." The Council resolved to look into the possibility of temporary accommodation to allow for a sale to take place in 2010 or 2011, to investigate a civic presence in Monmouthshire and also to further investigate new ways of working such as home working or hot desking.
