A COUNCIL leader has revealed more details about a plan to build new offices for hundreds of civil servants that could keep their jobs in a North East town.

Bill Dixon, leader of Darlington Borough Council, said the authority had “bent over backwards” to find new accommodation within Darlington for the Department for Education (DfE) and that a proposed a 32,000sq ft office block offers exactly what they need.

The DfE wants to transfer 480 staff from Mowden Hall, in Darlington, to an as-yet undecided location in the region, possibly in Newcastle, Durham or elsewhere in Darlington.

Darlington Borough Council unveiled its Case for Darlington project earlier this week, which would see a new office block linked to the existing town hall in the heart of the town centre.

Coun Dixon said the proposed new building would be funded by rent paid by the DfE and that the entire project should break-even.

He said: “The deal is self-financing, it will be paid for through the rental income from the DfE.

“They were very keen on the idea on the idea of a hub with the council so we looked at putting it at the back of the town hall. We own the land and there is value in having those extra jobs in the town centre.”

Last year, the council started consultation about possibly leaving the town hall, which is in poor condition, but Coun Dixon said if the new plans went ahead the authority would commit to staying.

He said: “This has completely altered any probability of us moving. If this goes ahead the town hall will stay and we’ll have to refurbish it.”

Asked if the council had considered knocking down the town hall to build one shared site he said: “Time is against us – they need to be in the new place by November 2014 and we couldn’t clear the town hall site that quickly.

“The new offices could be built at the same time as the new cinema development and get all of the building out of the way in one go.”

The council has also suggested Lingfield Point, which offers purpose-built offices for hundreds of workers, as an alternative site for DfE workers in Darlington.

A final decision on the future of the Mowden Hall jobs will be made before the end of April.