The Conservative Group at Suffolk County Council has raised serious concerns following the release of Freedom of Information documents detailing changes to office accommodation for the Reform UK administration at Endeavour House, including more than £15,000 in costs itemised against the creation of a new office for the Leader of the Council, Cllr Michael Hadwen.
The documents show that senior officers were discussing the Leader's requirements within days of the new administration taking office, with one noting that the Leader had "already chased" the office moves and "will be expecting some solutions sooner rather than later". The works were approved on 11 June by one of the council's Joint Chief Executives in a Microsoft Teams exchange. The documents contain no member-level decision, committee report or published decision record, and no budget existed for the works, which officers agreed would be "absorbed" within the Corporate Services directorate. The overall project is estimated at £18,484.31 excluding VAT, a figure which does not include video-conferencing equipment that was still being priced separately.
The Conservative Group believes residents deserve a clear explanation as to why this level of expenditure is justified at a time when council finances remain under pressure and Suffolk County Council is due to be abolished under Local Government Reorganisation.
Cllr Richard Rout, Leader of the Conservative Group at Suffolk County Council, said:
"Reform came in promising to save money but one of their first acts looks to be splashing out around £15,000 on a new office for their leader, including thousands of pounds on kit and wiring for a special button so he doesn't have to get up from his desk to open his door.
"Endeavour House already provides office accommodation and workspace for councillors to carry out their duties. Taxpayers will rightly question why thousands of pounds are being spent on changes that appear to have more to do with personal aggrandisement than the delivery of frontline services."
Cllr Matthew Hicks, the previous Leader of Suffolk County Council, said:
"The previous office served me perfectly well for eight years, and a similar room has been perfectly adequate for leaders over the last twenty years. Why does Cllr Hadwen think he needs a £15,000-plus leader's suite? The fact that public money is being spent so he doesn't have to get up and open his own door, like everyone else in that building does, beggars’ belief."
As itemised in the council's own cost schedule, £15,417.15, more than 83% of the total project cost, sits against the Leader's office alone. That includes £12,816.19 on power, data and access control works, including a card reader, push-to-exit system and a desk-side door release button, £1,232.13 for frosted glazing to the office's glass partition, £844.83 for IT equipment, £424 for a specialist desk chair and £100 for decals. The documents also show spending on the Cabinet Members room, including new monitors, keyboards and mice, and a £300 lock separating the Cabinet office from the rest of the floor. The only new chair purchased anywhere in the project is the Leader's.
The Conservative Group is calling on the Reform administration to publish the final cost of the project including all IT and video-conferencing equipment, to identify the budget from which it is being funded, to explain under what authority the expenditure was approved without any member-level decision, and to demonstrate how it represents value for money for Suffolk taxpayers.
