Hampshire council hopes to make £1.3m renting out office space

Councillor Roy Perry, leader of Hampshire County Council said the council was freeing up office space and sharing space with other public sector organisations.

He plans to put the cash back into the council, reducing how much needs to be cut.

He said: ‘The county council’s ongoing financial challenges are well documented, and it’s right that we continue to explore every avenue to help balance the budget.

‘We have undertaken significant office rationalisation in previous years, and work is ongoing to ensure we continue to use our remaining buildings as efficiently as possible and generate income from existing assets – an approach residents have told us they support.

‘Freeing up more office space for other organisations to use – particularly public sector partners, not only creates new opportunities for the county Council to generate income, it can also help our public sector partners reduce their running costs.’