COUNCILLORS will be asked to approve an overspend of almost £1m on refurbishing a council building.

At today's meeting, Herefordshire Council's cabinet will be asked to approve an increase in capital expenditure to complete the building work at Blueschool House in Blueschool Street, Hereford.

The work is ongoing to complete the joint customer services hub, which will include the council's central customer services team, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), Jobcentre Plus and housing services.

When councillors first approved the project they were told it would cost £950,000, with £250,000 being provided by the council, but the project estimate is now at £1.92m, an extra £970,000.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has contributed £400,000 to the project, while The Homes and Communities Agency has contributed £300,000.

Today, cabinet is being asked to approve £50,000 to be allocated from the ICT revenue reserve to provide sufficient ICT equipment at Blueschool House; £200,000 to be allocated from the earmarked economy, communities and corporate revenue reserve to support the increased costs; and having regard to the continued revenue benefits identified in the revised business case, a further £720,000 to be approved to deliver a joint customer services hub at Blueschool House, bringing the total estimated cost to £1.92m.

The council said all renovation works continue to be delivered within allocated funds, with part-funding from an underspend in the accommodation budget and a DWP revenue contribution (£225,000).

The council also said it will achieve a saving of more than £1million over the next ten years by investing in Blueschool House, receiving rental income from DWP and saving on property costs for Franklin House.

Herefordshire Council’s central customer services team will move from Franklin House to the building, opening to customers on Monday, September 4.

Councillor Harry Bramer, cabinet member for contracts and assets, said: “I am pleased to announce that the Blueschool House joint customer services hub will open on time in September, despite the challenges we have faced along the way from discovering asbestos to improving the IT infrastructure.

“By sharing the space between Herefordshire Council customer services, Jobcentre Plus and housing services, we can provide a fully-accessible city centre hub with an improved experience for customers, including those with multiple needs.”