Part of council HQ set to become flats for NHS staff
LDRSPart of a council's headquarters look set to become flats for hospital workers.
Plans have been submitted to turn part of County Hall, in Taunton, Somerset, into accommodation for NHS staff.
The building, known as C Block, at the south end of the site near Vivary Park, was sold by Somerset Council in April for £1.7m to a specialist developer which has previously built flats for hospital staff in Yeovil.
Developer, Prime Plc, has submitted a planning application for 71 flats on the Taunton town centre site, which is less than one mile (1.6km) from Musgrove Park Hospital.
The Worcester-based company recently delivered Yeovil Hospital's new diagnostic centre, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
In order to provide suitable access to the flats, the building will be extended to allow for new stairs and lifts to be installed.
The flats will be operated by Hyve, also owned by Prime Plc, which is described as a not-for-profit provider of key worker housing, and currently operates a similar development near Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester.
It will give first refusal for the new properties to local NHS staff, and said it was working with the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, which manages Musgrove Park Hospital, to see how it could meet local need.
AHR ArchitectsIf NHS staff are not forthcoming, flats could also be offered to other public sector and healthcare staff, including firefighters, police officers, teachers, social workers and childcare workers.
The council confirmed in March 2024 that it was looking to sell C Block, which it said had been under-utilised since the coronavirus pandemic, as part of a wider review of its land, property and other assets.
It said the £1.7m raised from the sale will be used to fund frontline services.
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