Place project update
Thank you to all colleagues who attended one of our recent employee sessions explaining the background to the council’s new place project.
As part of our Asset Review, the council is carrying out the place project to review properties that deliver, or have the potential to deliver, general face-to-face services. This includes buildings that offer customer facilities where the public can speak face-to-face with an advisor, libraries with access to computers, bookable rooms and buildings which have the potential to be a community hub.
Opportunities
While there are no plans to stop or reduce these services, new approaches to the operation of buildings could help ensure the council has good quality, well used assets within local communities offering modern and flexible facilities to meet the needs of local residents. This could be achieved by using buildings differently, for example in some communities co-locating services which might currently be delivered from different buildings under one roof. There are already examples of where such community hub models operate successfully – such as the Bleachingfield in Dunbar and the George Johnstone Centre in Tranent. There could also be opportunities for communities to take over the running of some buildings such as by leasing them, community asset transfer or looking at opportunities with community planning partners and others.
Through the Asset Review, much work has already been carried out resulting in savings for the council, such as the closure of Randall House and relocation of colleagues to John Muir House and elsewhere.
But there is still more work to do and we need to proceed with the next phase of the Asset Review. In what continues to be an extremely challenging financial climate, the council is required to deliver previously agreed budget savings in the next five years. Ensuring that we operate good quality and well utilised buildings with modern facilities in a sustainable and efficient way, can help address these challenges.
Engagement
The project is being driven by evidence-based data analysis and informed by both employee and community feedback. It is hoped that this will allow us to develop a sustainable approach to service delivery, reduced premises costs and a clear long term property strategy.
The recent online briefing sessions provided employees with an overview of the background, set out how colleagues can contribute to the process and provided an opportunity to ask questions. We are in the process of inviting community organisations including key building stakeholders to a series of workshops. This will provide an opportunity to discuss the principle of this approach and gather views on ways in which buildings are used. There will then be drop-in sessions open to the public, as well as an online questionnaire, when local residents will be able to provide feedback. Further details of this will be published as soon as possible.
An intranet page is also being set up where further information will be added for employees in the weeks and months ahead.
If you have any questions please email placemakingproject@eastlothian.gov.uk
Tom Reid, Head of Infrastructure
Caroline Rodgers, Head of Communities & Partnerships
