Wednesday, August 20, 2003

At a meeting on 29 July, Surrey County Council voted to relocate County Hall from Kingston to Woking and to undertake a project to modernise the council’s offices across the county. Equion plc, a division of John Laing plc, has been confirmed as the preferred partner in the office portfolio modernisation.

In a groundbreaking deal Equion will support this move by managing the construction of a new County Hall that will provide a modern working environment for the council’s staff and elected members. Equion will also provide a complete facilities and property management service, for all properties within the Office project. Detailed negotiations will continue with Equion and it is likely a contract will be signed in spring 2004 with a view to completing a new County Hall building in 2006.

Nick Skellett, Leader of Surrey County Council, said:

"This is a historic step for Surrey County Council and heralds our continued transformation into a modern local democratic organisation and community leader for the 21st century. The relocation of County Hall and new office arrangements across the County will bring us right into the heart of Surrey. It will also help to make better use of money in the long term and provide our staff with the office accommodation and tools they need to deliver even better services to Surrey residents."

Richard Weston, Chief Executive of Equion, said:

“We are delighted to be involved in such an innovative scheme which we are sure will deliver real benefits for the people of Surrey. Through our investments and development activity, we are able not only to facilitate the creation of a new County Hall but also to take responsibility for the disposal of the existing sites. We will share any profits with the Council.”

Equion, the award winning infrastructure developer and operator, will manage the design and construction of a state of the art County Hall building in Woking as well as acquiring leasehold premises for the council throughout the County. In total Equion will be managing over 330,000 square feet of office space on behalf of the Council. The sales proceeds realised by Equion on a number of surplus freehold properties including County Hall in Kingston will be used to fund a large proportion of the costs of the project.

1. Images
Images of the new council buildings are available upon request.

2. Facilities management
Equion will be responsible for all aspects of facilities and property management for the County Council. The deal will give the Council real flexibility regarding its office portfolio and the risks of running costs will attach to Equion. Equion have provide the Council with guaranteed values for its surplus properties whilst sharing any surplus should it arise.

3. Construction
The new County Hall will be designed by EPR and built by Laing O’Rourke. Two sites in Woking at the Brewery Road Car Park and Quadrant House (the Phillips Building) are being considered.

4. Equion plc
Equion plc, a subsidiary of John Laing plc, is a specialist provider of facilities in the PFI and PPP markets with a long-term perspective and approach. Equion offers a combination of skills and experience, from planning and funding through to design, construction and operation. . Equion won the Infrastructure Journal PPP Developer of the Year Award in February 2003 for the second year running. http://www.equion.plc.uk/

Equion is actively involved in the management of a wide range of police, education, health, defence and special purpose serviced accommodation projects including:

- 17 new PFI police stations & facilities for the Greater Manchester Police Authority
- South East London Police Stations for the Metropolitan Police
- the Metropolitan Police Specialised Training Centre
- the Ministry of Defence Main Building refurbishment in Whitehall
- the new Norfolk & Norwich, and Queen Elizabeth (Greenwich) Hospitals
- the Joint Services Command and Staff College at Shrivenham
- Highlands Secondary School in Enfield
- [Preferred bidder status for a batched schools project for Newham and Enfield Councils]

The company is one of the most successful participants in the Government's Private Finance Initiative and has a proven record of delivering new investments on time and on cost

5. John Laing plc
John Laing plc, a publicly quoted company, holds a large and expanding portfolio of investments spanning transport (including 100% ownership of Chiltern Railways), health, education and special purpose government facilities. The majority of the investments are within the UK though a number are in continental Europe and Australia. http://www.laing.com/.