Council set to close 'obsolete' County Hall

An inspection found Kendal's County Hall to be "physically, functionally, environmentally and economically obsolete"

A council is set to move its services from its historic County Hall after a report said it needed £7.4m in repairs.

On Tuesday, Westmorland and Furness Council cabinet members approved plans to close the hall in Kendal from 30 September.

The municipal building, used by the council as a meeting place, was found to be "physically, functionally, environmentally and economically obsolete" following an inspection.

The council will now focus on using Kendal's South Lakeland House in its place.

The hall was the headquarters of the former Westmorland County Council from 1939 to 1974 and also used by Cumbria County Council until a shake-up of local government in 2023.

Now used for council business alongside South Lakeland House, it is in need of significant repair.

An inspection in December found the building needed re-wiring and, about £3.9m of essential maintenance and an additional £3.5m for decarbonisation.

'Modern future'

The age of the building also means significant alterations would be needed to comply with accessibility legislation, inspectors said.

Cabinet member for highways, assets and ICT Peter Thornton told the cabinet: "It's not that it’s been neglected over the years, it's just a 100 year old building."

The council has begun working on a strategy to transfer services to the recently refurbished South Lakeland House and Town Hall.

Mr Thornton said the "future" was to have "a modern building" for a "modern council".

He said: "It's about a value for money council that delivers better services at lower costs."

The building's future will be reviewed and subject to a separate decision making process.