HAMPSHIRE County Council will consider “significantly” cutting the number of buildings it owns or rents, partly because more staff are working from home.

If approved, the sale will move staff to local hubs and increase the use of libraries to provide more public-facing services and drop-in spaces.

A council report said several buildings are in poor condition and need significant investment to make sure they are fit for purpose.

In 2023, a review was undertaken to address the surplus capacity and establish opportunities to further reduce the office portfolio and associated facilities across wider Hampshire.

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The review found that the county council could reduce the number of buildings by moving services, developing new working methods, and using retained buildings more efficiently.

This review incorporated main area office hubs and ancillary sites, library buildings, registry offices, former children’s centre buildings and corporate storage across the county.

Although libraries and registry offices were included in the review, it did not consider closing any libraries or other public services. Those buildings were included to consider how any office space within them might be used in the future.

It also includes accommodation the county council occupies under lease arrangements in several district council offices.

All assets on the review are currently used as office accommodations, meeting spaces for county council employees, or spaces that can accommodate staff and services in office buildings.

Around 2,000 county council employees are located in the buildings under review. On average, only 30 per cent of desks are in use at any one time, with peak utilisation reaching 50 per cent.

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The total amount spent on property costs, which includes rent, rates, and utilities, for all the assets under review is £3.3m net of rental income and £3.7m gross. Ten assets under review contribute to 70 per cent of the total property costs.

The report indicated that “several assets” are “in poor condition” and “require significant investment to maintain” them in a “fit-for-purpose state”.

There is a mixture of freehold and leasehold sites across the portfolio. A quarter of the assets are leased and, therefore, cannot be sold.

Where there are freehold sites which the council wants to sell, planning appraisals and title reviews will be required to inform detailed valuations and a per-asset disposal strategy.

It is estimated that the sale of the assets identified in the review could generate £7.6m.

The proposal will be considered on Thursday, March 14.