Why Gloucester City Council are moving their new reception and saving £100,000 in the process

Months after Gloucester City Council moved from Herbert Warehouse to Shire Hall the reception will be moving too.

Later this summer will see the reception move from Gloucester Docks to new premises in the heart of the city.

Anyone wanting to make appointments about a variety of issues related to the city council will have to head to 92 to 96 Westgate Street, the building opposite The Old Crown put and next to Jane’s Bakery.

It will house the customer service centre on the ground floor, while some of the council’s business partners will occupy the floors above.

Civic chiefs expect the move to save at least £100,000 per year in the move.

Although the move is set to take place in the summer, a date is yet to be formalised.

The opening times of the reception and the services available will not change in the move.

It comes after the council reversed a decision to close early on Wednesdays and start a new appointment system.

A spokeswoman for Gloucester City Council said the new location will be “more welcoming and allows residents to use a range of online services with computers specially installed”.

Investment into new IT and telephone systems will also happen, which a city council spokeswoman said “would have been necessary regardless of the move”. 

As well as all the new technology officers will be on hand to assist people and will be able to offer appointments to customers who need them.

The office has been designed to help people with mental health issues or physical disabilities and there is an area set aside to keep children occupied.

It comes after the city council moved into new offices in Shire Hall.

The council’s previous base at the Herbert, Kimberley and Phillpotts Warehouse in Gloucester Docks is currently being marketed by Bruton Knowles and could be put to a number of different uses, including a hotel.

Gloucester City Councillor Hannah Norman (C, Quedgeley Severn Vale), cabinet member for performance and resources, said: “We are committed to improving the way we deliver our services and making it easier for our residents to access them. The reception move is a key part of that. 

“We also want to make it easier for residents to access a wide range of services online, including making payments and booking services at a time and in a way which suits them as they would for any other modern organisation or business.”