Medway Council wants to rent out office space at its headquarters to provide much-needed rental income.

The number of staff working at Gun Wharf, Chatham, has plummeted during the pandemic leading the council to look at alternative premises.

During a meeting of the council's business support overview and scrutiny committee yesterday, questions were asked by the council's Mayor Habib Tejan (Con) about the future of the Dock Road facility.

Chief legal officer Perry Holmes said: "We considered the fact that at the moment there's 8% occupancy of this building; (the) majority of our staff and members work from other places, from home or wherever. "

Mr Holmes explained the approximate cost to heat building each year was £1.1 million because it is not very energy efficient.

He went on to say a paper had been informally presented to cabinet members this week saying the council is in advanced discussions with a "significant potential tenant who can take some of the space that there currently is in the building."

'We considered the fact that at the moment there's 8% occupancy of this building...'

This would involve remodelling to retain space which remote workers and councillors could use should they wish.

Mr Holmes said more information would be shared in the public domain once a deal was struck.

And after a year of people working from home during the Covid-19 pandemic, it is beginning to look as if office jobs might never be quite the same again.

As the UK continues its route out of the third coronavirus lockdown, other businesses are re-evaluating the importance of office space after it became clear many jobs could be done just as efficiently from home.

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