A report was submitted which sought to secure approval for the implementation of the results of the exercise conducted to identify a solution to meet the Authority’s longer term accommodation needs.

Members were reminded that the Authority’s move to Gateway Plaza in December 2018 had been imposed upon them by the landlord’s decision to use the Regent Street site in a different way.  Although Gateway offered better quality accommodation on reasonable commercial terms, in making the decision to move, the Authority had determined to commission work to examine its longer term accommodation requirements.

It was noted that the current lease had a break exercisable with six months’ notice at December 2021 and the Corporate Strategy included a project to identify options for meeting the Authority’s longer term needs in order to inform the strategy for dealing with the break.

As the Authority did not have the technical expertise internally to identify and appraise options for this sort of project, a procurement process was undertaken with the assistance of BMBC using a national consultancy framework which resulted in the appointment of FMG Consulting and GT3 Architects.

The options had been developed using factors which were detailed within the report and engagement with staff and managers through workshops and questionnaires.

A short list of three options had been identified:

·         Option 1 – Additional space at Gateway Plaza to take the whole of the 8^th floor – lease.

·         Option 2 – Oakwell House, Barnsley – whole building – lease.

·         Option 3 – 18 Regent Street – acquisition of a cleared site and purpose built new build – freehold.

As set out in the confidential appendix to the report, other options were ruled out on various grounds including the amount of space available and location.

Financial modelling had been undertaken on each of the options along with a set of criteria that had been developed from the brief and engagement with Authority staff; these had been used to provide a weighted score for each option.  The results were shown within the report.  In addition to the evaluation, a graphic within the report summarised the pluses and minuses of each option.

The results of the evaluation showed that Option 2, Oakwell Hose scored significantly better than the other options and it was recommended that officers be authorised to negotiate a long-term lease on the premises with an option to purchase should the landlord wish to sell.

G Graham informed Members that, as the site was out of the town centre, a travel plan would be developed to minimise car use and reduce the Authority’s environmental footprint.

In answer to a question from Cllr Yasseen, G Graham reported that there was no suitable buildings to buy, rather than lease, in the area at the current time.

In answer to a question from Cllr Murphy, he also confirmed that the building had full disabled access.

RESOLVED – That Members:

i)      Endorse the preferred option identified in the appraisal exercise.

ii)      Authorise officers to undertake negotiations to secure the preferred option within the revenue cost estimates as set out in the body of the report.

iii)     Authorise officers to agree an appropriate contribution from the Capital Projects Reserve of up to £782,000 for the fitting out of the preferred option to the Authority’s specification including improvements to the environmental footprint and energy efficiency of the building.

iv)     Approve the serving of appropriate notices in relation to the Authority’s current accommodation as and when appropriate.