Council's former HQ could be demolished in a year

County Hall in Worcester has been left vacant since June 2024

Worcestershire County Council's former headquarters could be demolished within a year.

The authority has signed off on plans to sell Worcester's County Hall, in a process that could be completed within three years.

The building has been left vacant since June last year, after reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) and legionella bacteria were found, with staff working remotely or at other council sites.

But the building itself is said to be costing the authority millions in business rates and other ongoing costs, with councillors agreeing demolition as the way forward.

At a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Adam Kent, leader of the Conservative group, said demolishing the Spletchey Road site would cost £3m.

"Could I suggest we commence demolition immediately? The money that's going to be saved could be extremely beneficial to the council," he said

"I understand the timeline for doing that, if we got on it now, would be something like 35 to 40 weeks, so it's critically important that we make that decision and say 'go'."

Matt Jenkins, leader of the Green and Independent Alliance group, said the council would be making the land more valuable by demolishing the building.

Following the site's closure in June 2024, the council's former Tory administration spent £390,000 investigating whether a return was feasible before deeming it "surplus to requirements".

The now Reform UK-led council looked into whether a school could be built on the site, but a feasibility report did not identify a viable option for educational use.

Reform UK councillor Rob Wharton said the authority should push on with the sale of the site due to "the financial reality of where we are as a council".

"Even as an empty building it is costing in the region of £1.5m per annum or £125,000 per month, so any delay is simply leading to the council tax payers of Worcestershire pouring money down the drain when there is no need to do so," he added.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.