PARTS of Huntingdonshire District Council’s new �17million headquarters complex are likely to be let out to other public sector bodies as part of a money-saving exercise.

The council is close to concluding a deal to move part of the another public sector organisation into the upper floor of the new ‘civic suite’ in Samian Court, the building in which council meetings are held, next to Pathfinder House, the main headquarters building.

The move will displace the council’s environment team, which move either next door into the main building, where space has been freed up by other cost-cutting measures, or to the council’s operations deport, Eastfield House, in Latham Road, where there is also space, the council’s executive leader, Cllr Jason Ablewhite said yesterday (Tuesday).

And talks are in progress with Cambridgeshire County Council to co-locate officials who work closely with HDC officers in spare office space in Pathfinder House, where the two councils can share a reception desk and other services.

“Under a scheme called Making Assets Count, we have been working with other public sector organisations looking at our estates to see where there is spare accommodation and where we no longer need the assets,” Cllr Ablewhite told The Hunts Post.

“These are brand new state-of-the-art buildings, and we can reduce our overheads by increasing revenue.

“You could say that, so long as the Government behaves and doesn’t change the rules, we have solved the deficit problem at least to the extent of not needing further redundancies, though we shall see some natural wastage.”

HDC currently has a pay freeze – suggested by staff as a contribution to the council’s dire financial straits.

“But we have a lot of work to do with the staff side to get a better system of pay scales,” the leader added.