The West Midlands council spending £1.5m-a-year - equivalent of around £4,110-a-day - on empty offices

A cash-strapped West Midlands council has been slammed for spending more than £4,000-a-day of taxpayer money - on empty offices.

Worcestershire County Council’s headquarters closed in June 2024 after potentially deadly legionella was detected in the water supply. Despite being empty for more than two years, the sprawling 50-year-old site in Spetchley Road, Worcester, is still a drain on taxpayers.

Figures show it cost £1.5 million to maintain the building last year - the equivalent of around £4,110-a-day.

More than £137,000 was spent on security, supplying the empty building with electricity cost £219,000 and the council paid £553,000 in business rates or national non-domestic rates (NNDR).

There were also £313,000 worth of one-off costs incurred during the financial year, including £245,000 for the removal, decommissioning and relocation of a data centre.

Labour councillor Jabba Riaz said: “The costs are staggering and eyewatering - the auditors and financial officer will be having sleepless nights seeing the amount of money going down the drain. We cannot afford to sustain this level of wastage. We must do something about this ASAP.

“The mind boggles that we haven’t been able to negotiate a reduction or write off of some of the long list of charges whilst the RAAC issue and legionella issue is resolved and the building lies unable to be used for its purpose.”

Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) was found at County Hall in September 2023, causing parts of the building to be closed off. Legionella bacteria was found in the building’s water supply nine months later and it was shut for good. The council published a disposal notice for the Spetchley Road site on its website in August.

The cost of moving staff and equipment to rented offices nearby cost the taxpayer a further £160,000.

No single party has overall control of the council after the minority Reform UK administration was replaced by a cross-party coalition of the Greens, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.

Adam Kent, the council's deputy leader and cabinet member for finance, corporate services and business, said: "The council continues to work at pace to complete the decommissioning of County Hall during the current financial year, which will remove the majority of the ongoing running costs associated with the building."

Councillors have previously called for the site to be handed over to the NHS so the crowded Worcestershire Royal Hospital can be expanded. Group leader Alan Amos said finding more space for the hospital is “critical”.