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Notts Labour councillors say they will look to sell new council headquarters if they win May election

By Lauren Monaghan, Junior Local Democracy Reporting Service

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Nottinghamshire County Council’s Labour group says it still plans to sell or lease out the authority’s brand new headquarters if it gains control of the authority in May.

The council met at County Hall in West Bridgford yesterday (February 27) to discuss its budget for 2025/26, in the final full council meeting before the authority moves in to Oak House – its new building at Top Wighay, near Hucknall.

The Labour Group at the authority submitted a series of amendment to the Conservative authority’s finance plans, including a sale of Oak House – saying the money would be used to fund key services.

The group says this would include £1.2 million for flood defences, £900,000 for foster carers and £1.5 million into a dedicated pavements repair fund.

The Labour group says the new council building has cost taxpayers £23 million.

But the proposed changes were struck down in the chamber yesterday, with 11 councillors voting for and 49 against.

Conservative leaders say selling the new building and staying at County Hall is too costly because the aging building needs millions of pounds spending on it to update and maintain it.

Labour Group Leader, Councillor Kate Foale told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) before the vote yesterday: “[Oak House] is dumped in the middle of a field with no transport links- how can that be good? We need it to be accessible to the public.

“I think we can make [County Hall] pay, a multiuse-type building with good transport links.

“We could rent some of it, have some apartments, it could become Nottinghamshire South Bank, it could be lovely. Ok it’s a bit ambitious but I want us to be ambitious.”

Cllr Foale told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the Labour group’s plan, if it wins a majority in May’s local elections, still includes selling Oak House and continuing democratic services in County Hall.

She said: “We will look in the first instance at selling Oak House. However, we are open to exploring other workable options, such as leasing some or all of the [Oak House].

“It is important that we be more creative about how we use the civic centre at County Hall, both as a democrat hub and for the benefit of the public, for whom it was originally built. We are focused on sustainable, long-term planning, rather than flogging yet another asset for short term gain.”

Responding to the proposal to sell Oak House to the LDRS before the meeting moved to the vote, Council Leader, Sam Smith (Con), said: “What they [Labour] don’t tell residents, is if they flog [Oak House] off, the people who are going to work from there will have to work somewhere- County Hall is not fit to do so.”

The Conservatives say it will cost around £50 million of taxpayers money for works to make County Hall fit for purpose.

He added: “Where are they going to get that money from?

“[Oak House] saves half a million on adult social care and children’s care services in rented accommodation each year, starting this year.

“Moving services that are more required in the north of the county, into the north of the county, tnat’s what Oak House does.”

Also speaking to the LDRS before the vote, Councillor Richard Jackson (Con), cabinet member for finance, said: “County Hall is big, old and very expensive property. Moving to Oak House saves us at least £5 million a year in running costs on top of the millions we’d spending bringing County Hall up to spec.

Cllr Jackson added the authority has travel plans in place to ensure staff can get to Oak House.