'Rushed and panicked' council plan to abandon Shirehall raises questions over financial future, says councillor

Friday morning saw all Shropshire Council employees receive an e-mail telling them of plans to effectively close its headquarters to all but essential personnel within seven days.

As well as shutting Shirehall, the council's Conservative administration also confirmed its intention to close two sites in Bridgnorth, and one in Oswestry.

Now Councillor Rosemary Dartnall, the leader of the authority's Labour Group, has said the 'panicked' nature of the decision points to increasing concerns about the authority's finances.

The moves are all part of cost-cutting measures as the council seeks to avoid financial meltdown, and the local government equivalent of bankruptcy – a '114 notice'.

Shropshire Council's financial difficulties are well known, but have become increasingly pressing in recent weeks.

The authority has set itself a target of cutting an eye-watering £62m from its budget this year.

But recent reports from the council indicate that it could be as much as £37m over budget at the end of the financial year.

The authority was already planning to leave Shirehall for Guildhall in Frankwell. In September it agreed to start leaving from November, but the latest acceleration of those plans has triggered concerns.

Leaving the building has two potential benefits financially – it allows the authority to reduce costs, but also opens up the possibility of selling the site to developers, bringing in millions of pounds in extra funding.

But the latest move has been met with criticism from opposition councillors.

Councillor Dartnall said: "Shropshire Council staff received an email as they started work on Friday telling them that from next Friday, November 1, Shirehall is closing, and they will be required to work from home.

"That is less than a week's notice. Shifting everyone’s work setting in this panicked manner must leave everyone reeling and wondering what is coming next.

"At the September council meeting, a draft removal strategy was put forward to make savings by moving Shirehall staff to the vacant Guildhall.

"The plan was rushed, with little clarity, moving staff over several months but leaving Shirehall part-occupied. Now we have this sudden announcement – it is clear the financial crisis at Shirehall is worsening.

"Council staff must already feel entirely undermined by the financial crisis, and how this relates to the future of the council and their own livelihoods. Shropshire residents will be worried about the essential services the council provides and they rely on.

"Council staff have a right to be treated with consideration at all times but the drip-feed of every more bad news through this financial crisis has been undermining.

"The council’s staff should be able to expect their working conditions to be upheld and to be properly informed about a crisis they did nothing to cause."

In Friday's message to staff explaining the move, council leader Lezley Picton said: "Shropshire Council is taking urgent action to reduce its spending. This is key to becoming the modern, efficient and financially sustainable council it needs to be.

"There are a small number of statutory functions we must maintain at Shirehall such as Registrars Services until these can move to Guildhall, and arrangements will be made for others who cannot work from home. Some tenants who use Shirehall will also remain, but vacating the space we currently use will allow us to relocate these to other areas and shut down many parts of the building.

"The Guildhall has now been vacated by UCS and the first teams will start moving across from November allowing the start of the decommissioning of Shirehall.

"These urgent steps reflect the need for action now to reduce our spend in year and these measures alone will save more than £100,000 this winter through lower heating, lighting and cleaning costs."