A FORMER part of Somerset Council’s Taunton headquarters will be turned into new flats under newly submitted plans.

The council confirmed in March 2024 that it was looking to sell off C Block of County Hall as part of a wider review of its land, property and other assets.

After months of negotiations, the building was sold in April for £1.7-million to Prime PLC, a developer specialising in health and care properties.

The company has now submitted plans to convert the vacant building into 71 flats, which will marketed towards healthcare professionals and other public sector staff.

C Block lies at the western end of County Hall, within easy reach of the Crescent car park and within walking distance of Taunton town centre.

The site will be converted in a similar fashion to the Moxom development on Park Street, which saw 69 flats created within the former Debenhams back office.

In order to provide suitable access to the new flats, the building will be extended slightly to allow for new stairs and lifts to be installed.

Once the new flats have been created, they will be operated by Hyve, a not-for-profit provider of key worker housing.

Hyve will give first refusal for the new properties to local NHS staff, and is working with the Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (which manages Musgrove Park Hospital) to see how it could meet local need.

A spokesman for AHR Architects (representing the applicant) said: “The concrete frame, floor slabs and shear walls remain in sound condition and are suitable for continued use.

“Lightweight partition walls will be introduced to subdivide the floorplates, with no changes to the core structure required.

“This strategy avoids unnecessary demolition and capitalises on the robustness of the original construction.

“In support of the residential conversion, a number of carefully considered external interventions are proposed.

“These include the construction of a new stair core to deliver a fully compliant fire strategy, a purpose-built bin store for effective waste management, a substation to meet future energy requirements, and secure basement cyclestorage to encourage sustainable transport.

“These additions have been sensitively designed to complement the existing building while ensuring compliance with modern safety, servicing, and sustainability standards.”

The C Block site is less than a mile’s walk to the hospital, with a nearby crossing over the A38 Upper High Street and a public footpath to provide a link between the main road and Parkfield Drive, linking up with other local walking and cycling routes.

If NHS staff are not forthcoming for the new flats, they could also be offered to other public sector and healthcare staff, including fire-fighters, police officers, teachers, social workers and childcare workers.

The £1.7-million raised from the sale of C Block will be used to fund front-line services, with the proceeds being built into the balanced budget which was set by councillors in early-March.

The developer intends to hold public drop-in sessions as part of its wider planning consultation, with details being announced in the coming weeks.