Durham County Hall demolition will take place in 2026
Last updated 1st May 2025
Council debates and meetings will be held at Durham’s County Hall until 2026 when the site will be cleared for demolition.
Durham County Council plans to demolish the current County Hall building at Aykley Heads and move into repurposed offices nearby.
A proposal to redevelop the Rivergreen Centre and build a new council chamber and offices was approved this week.
However, opposition Labour councillors say County Hall has become a significant financial burden on the council due to the site’s deteriorating state including roof damage, broken infrastructure and issues with internal heating and water systems.
Staff have already begun relocating to alternative office accommodation, including at purpose-built Corten House and Salvus House in Aykley Heads.
The budget allocated for maintaining County Hall in 2024/25 was £1.5 million and has been reduced to £900,000 in 2025/26 due to reduced occupation of the building.
Labour leader Carl Marshall said: “County Hall should be on the floor now. They should be well on with the scheme. There’s enough buildings around the county that can accommodate the council. The council should be going out round the community.”
A further £2.8 million has been pledged to raise the total budget for the demolition to £13.3 million as part of the council’s financial planning for the next four years. The demolition and clearing of the site have been described as “complex” by council officials.
Paul Darby, corporate director of resources, said: “Plans to demolish County Hall to allow for the transformation of Aykley Heads into a strategic employment site are progressing well.
“The majority of staff have now been relocated to our sites across the county and we have acquired the nearby Rivergreen Centre to use as our main headquarters. Civic and democratic functions will continue at County Hall until summer 2026 to allow for the creation of a council chamber and new public reception space at Rivergreen”
The Rivergreen development forms part of the wider regeneration of the Aykley Heads area to create a new Durham ‘Innovation District’ and attract high-tech jobs. Last week, Durham County Council stepped up its progress with the scheme after linking up with a development partner to develop land and build a ‘strategic employment site’. The current County Hall site will be repurposed to make way for a new development hoped to attract 3,700 jobs.
Plans to develop land at the Durham City site were first revealed in 2018 and progressed earlier this week after cabinet members agreed to appoint a joint venture partner.
The council said its vision is for Aykley Heads and the wider area to be “home to research, green jobs, electronics, digital and creative, fintech, life sciences and satellite applications sectors”.
The nearby Durham University business school, recently approved data centre, Milburngate, and the refurbished Durham Light Infantry Museum and Art Gallery would also form part of the Durham Innovation District.