Woking's offices are recommended as West Surrey Council's operational HQ, scoring 4.13 to Millmead's 4.03. Millmead in Guildford would host council meetings.
West Surrey Council should run its day-to-day business from Woking, not Guildford, when it takes over from Guildford Borough Council on 1 April 2027. Officers have recommended the Woking Borough Council offices and Victoria Gate, 100 metres apart in Woking town centre, as the new council’s operational headquarters.
Guildford’s Millmead House is recommended as the civic headquarters instead. Full council meetings, public participation and democratic services would be based there.
The West Surrey Shadow Executive decides on Monday 12 October (Surrey LGR Hub).
How close it was
The officers’ report scores each building out of 5 against weighted tests: capacity, how well it works as an office, whether it can be ready in time, location, cost, constraints and longer-term flexibility (West Surrey Shadow Executive report).
For the operational headquarters, Millmead came within a tenth of a point:
| Building | Weighted score |
|---|---|
| Woking offices and Victoria Gate combined | 4.13 |
| Millmead House, Guildford | 4.03 |
| Woking offices alone | 4.03 |
| Victoria Gate, Woking | 3.74 |
| Surrey Heath House, Camberley | 3.70 |
| Civic Centre, Addlestone | 3.21 |
| The Burys, Godalming | 2.63 |
| Knowle Green, Staines | 2.56 |
Millmead matched the Woking pairing on capacity, office function, readiness, cost and transport. It scored higher on constraints. It lost on two lines:
- Geographic centrality, where Woking scored 5 and Millmead 4
- Long-term headquarters potential, where Woking scored 5 and Millmead 3
For the civic role, Millmead was the clear winner, with 4.63. Surrey Heath House in Camberley came second on 3.75, and the Woking offices scored 2.99.
Why Millmead gets the council meetings
West Surrey Council will have 90 councillors. The report says Millmead is “the only site currently capable of accommodating full attendance at council meetings”.
Its chamber holds about 67 seats now. Opening up the neighbouring Room 1 takes the layout used by the shadow council to about 136. Woking’s chamber has 120 places in all, but only 53 of them are member and officer desks; the rest are 23 press seats and a 44-seat public gallery. Victoria Gate has no chamber.
The report also lists what Millmead offers as an office:
- 630 desks, 460 in New Millmead and about 170 in Old Millmead
- 87 parking spaces plus about 23 for visitors, and 8 electric vehicle bays
- running costs of £1.42 million to £1.55 million a year
- rent from tenants of about £227,700 a year, falling to £120,500 when Surrey County Council’s lease ends on vesting day
Old Millmead is Grade II listed, which the report records as a constraint.
What the operational headquarters actually is
The Woking choice is narrower than “headquarters” suggests. The report says it is office space for up to 60 people: the new chief executive’s leadership team and their direct reports, working from about 30 desks.
It says plainly that this “is not a proposal for where the entire organisation” should be based. Where other staff transferring from Guildford Borough Council end up depends on later decisions about how services are designed.
Council-run theatres were looked at for meetings and ruled out. Their managers said regular council use would hurt commercial bookings.
The cost
The Shadow Executive is asked to approve a one-off budget of £200,000 for the work, subject to procurement. It would come from the £900,000 fund the government has given West Surrey for reorganisation, and the report notes that fund is already fully allocated.
Getting Millmead’s chamber ready is estimated at £100,000 to £200,000. The figure depends on whether every councillor gets a microphone or two share one. Adding electronic voting pushes it to the top of that range. Docking stations and screens in the chamber add £10,000. The report puts the Camberley chamber, the only alternative, at £50,000 to £100,000.
The report says an equalities impact assessment has not yet been completed.
Only for day one
Both choices are described as day-one arrangements. Where West Surrey Council keeps its offices in the longer term is left to the new council after April 2027, through a separate estate review.
Councillor Paul Follows, leader of the West Surrey Shadow Council, said: “These arrangements provide a stable and practical foundation for the new council, while giving us the flexibility to listen, learn and shape our longer-term plans around the needs of our communities and workforce.”
What it means for you
- Nothing changes at the counter. The shadow authority says residents will still be able to visit existing local council offices across West Surrey, and use the phone and online services as now.
- Full council meetings would be in Guildford. If you want to watch West Surrey Council in person or speak at a meeting, Millmead is where you would go.
- Watch Monday’s decision. The Shadow Executive meets at 10am on 12 October in the Council Chamber at Woking’s Civic Offices, Gloucester Square, and the meeting is webcast. The deadline for public questions passed at noon on 7 October.
Guildford’s council tax and services stay with Guildford Borough Council until 31 March 2027. Our council tax bands page has this year’s charges, and we covered the shadow authority’s renaming request in August.
Have your say