Councils' new HQ set to be given go-ahead

Long-standing plans for two councils' new headquarters are set to be approved next week after facing various delays.

South Oxfordshire District Council (SODC) wants to build the new four-storey complex opposite Didcot Parkway train station after its last permanent base, in Crowmarsh Gifford, was destroyed by fire in 2015.

SODC and Vale of White Horse District Council, which share staff, would use the building, having been based in Milton Park and Abbey House in Abingdon for the last decade.

SODC councillors look set to approve the project at a meeting on Wednesday.

The application was first submitted in August 2023 with the aim of being decided by May 2024.

But a number of amendments were made to the plans, which were submitted last November, in April and this month.

SODC planning officers have said the HQ, which would accommodate 305 staff, should be approved.

The authority received 45 objections from members of the public and three supporting comments.

SODC and Vale Council want to merge with West Berkshire Council to form Ridgeway Council as part of for local government reorganisation.

The government will have the final say on how councils are organised in Oxfordshire.

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