Jack Robertson of 3FOLD, the designers behind the Glasgow restructuring, claims there are huge efficiencies to be made in most towns if only the councils know where to look:

“We find that councils are often housed in outdated buildings which don’t allow the people to work efficiently. Once you start with a clean sheet and look afresh at service delivery with proper use of the latest technology and ‘agile’ working patterns the efficiencies are quite staggering. Such widespread changes require bold thinking from the start – it won’t work if you just tinker around the edges. You need to follow through into each area of the business and see it through to its logical conclusion – and that can be scary stuff.”

Marchday bring a wealth of innovative property asset management skills to the partnership with their proven track record of  adding value to challenging property stock. Marchday’s Lingfield Point, Darlington is already home to a cluster of public sector organisations including Student Loans Company, NHS, Darlington Borough Council and NAAFI. It has become a true ‘shared services’ centre providing these organisations with critical support without the crippling cost. Lingfield Point is also home to Xentrall, a joint venture between Darlington and Stockton Borough Councils providing IT services to both. John Orchard explains;

“Many of our public sector customers have the same needs. We can often provide shared facilities to satisfy these without burdening an individual organisation with the cost. This results in people needing less space and less duplication of meeting rooms, break out space etc. We developed a whole suite of bespoke services in line with our customers’ specialist needs.”

So how has the idea been received in public sector circles? Such wide ranging reforms are always going to be met with scepticism despite proven successes. John continues;

“It sounds too good to be true which can be a problem. We are in a unique position to help Councils make huge savings. If they team up with other similar organizations the saving go through the roof. The fact is that most councils don’t know what to do with their existing properties. We work with them to get best value out of their portfolio and get their running costs down. Instead of having a knee-jerk reaction we want people to understand how this works, to think seriously about it and to consider the benefits. In addition to huge savings the result will be a happier, more efficient workforce, an improved service for the customer and an organisation model which is sustainable for the next 20 years.”

Graham Black, of Catalyst Consult, designers of the Glasgow delivery processes and systems adds;

“We take care of everything from assessing the portfolio, to creating a full business case, handling change management and consolidating staffing needs. We are often able to offer a long rent free period. That frees cash to allow the customer to move and for the fit out of the building. They could then sell their property assets should they wish to – but even without doing that – because the buildings they move into are sustainable and cost effective – they make massive efficiency savings.” said Graham.

We are currently in discussion with other organisations. For more information visit www.oneplaceuk.com.