Strategic Property Review -
London Borough of Islington Accommodation Strategy for Local Government Offices

London Borough of Islington was undergoing a period of change. It was seeking to use this period of change to help define its longer-term agenda and to articulate its key objectives for the next two-three years. A central plank of this agenda was the implementation of an accommodation strategy for the Council’s administrative offices. Coretex was instructed to develop the Accommodation Strategy for the council.

Project scope:

Develop a route map for a cohesive long-term office accommodation strategyConfirm accommodation objectives (e.g.: cost saving, productivity, aligning property with key Council priorities, etc.)Articulate the demand for property within IslingtonIdentify options to provide cost effective, fit-for-purpose accommodation for c.3,000 staff

Coretex Process:

Using our strategy process the review helped define the needs of London Borough of Islington, how the current property and facilities supported this need, evaluated the options for change from a cost, risk and quality perspective. The project approach included:

• Interviews with senior members and officers of the Council, senior managers in the Finance and Property department
• Site Visits to their main locations
• Desktop review of Council policies and objectives, and property information

Project Outcome:

A five year plan was agreed including:

• Implement agreed approach to front office/back office and centralised/ decentralised functions
• Align property strategies with other resource areas – HR, IT and Finance.
• Align property strategies with Borough priorities (Improvement, Regeneration, Sustainability and Customer)