CP2566-24 One Public Estate Co-location

Devon and Torbay One Public Estate (managed by Devon County Council) wish to tender for a consultant to undertake a selection of public sector colocation opportunities and take forward those to business case stage or delivery dependant on the stage of the project named below -

• Phase 4 estates Restructure Devon County Council
• Colocation of NHS Properties - Through best practise visits
• Colocation of DCC / NHS into Follaton House / Forde House
• Colocation of DCC into Phoenix house Mid Devon
• Colocation of NHS /DCC into Kilworthy House
• Review of Key colocation opportunities in Ilfracombe / Barnstaple
• Review of key colocation opportunities Bideford .

The post-COVID-19 shift to hybrid working has significantly reduced the need for office space, with 65-85% of former office-based workers preferring remote work. This change necessitates a review of public sector office and front-facing space requirements.

The Devon and Torbay OPE Partnership has undertaken a review of their Estate and the requirements for a modern collocated public sector. The partnership examined the current public sector footprint in Devon, as well as the individual requirements of different services and departments within those services. Previous work has found that there were services across Devon with excess office / front facing space that was going unused as staff worked from home instead, and that there were several opportunities for the disposal of assets - often office building that were no longer fit-for-purpose - if staff were condensed into a reduced number of buildings.

Furthermore, previous work found colocation opportunities that could free up critical clinical space, allow for greater partnership working across different authorities, and release land for housing. It also introduced the idea of shared, Family Hubs, where staff could use any public sector space of geographic proximity on a reciprocal basis.