This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Registers of Scotland relocation
07/04/2005
Registers of Scotland, the agency responsible for land
and property registration, has been examining alternative
options for its location, as part of the Executive's
programme of relocation reviews.
It is now examining the following shortlist of areas,
for a partial and phased move of some of its
Edinburgh-based operations.
- Fife
- Glasgow City
- North Ayrshire
- North Lanarkshire
- South Lanarkshire
- West Lothian
Additionally, Registers of Scotland has been asked to
examine the potential for creating small satellite centres
in a small number of locations as part of the Small Units
Initiative.
Each of the options will now be examined in further
detail with a view to recommending location options to
Ministers in the summer.
The agency currently employs over 1,400 staff at four
locations in central Scotland. It is currently engaged in a
major change programme which will see staff numbers reduced
by more than 30 per cent over the next 10 years. Main
accommodation is currently at Meadowbank House in
Edinburgh, which is a Crown owned building. In Glasgow, the
agency has leased premises at 150 St Vincent Street. In
addition, it has two further leases for Customer Service
Centres at Erskine House, Queen Street, Edinburgh, and
George Square, Glasgow.
The Executive's policy on relocation has been in
operation since 1999. When a new unit or agency is
established, or if an existing unit is merged or otherwise
reorganised, the policy requires that a location review is
undertaken to ascertain where the body will be located. The
presumption is that it will be located outside Edinburgh.
For existing bodies, where a significant property
breakpoint is reached, for example the termination of a
lease, a relocation review should be undertaken and options
- including Edinburgh - should be considered. Registers of
Scotland was included in the programme of relocation
reviews in 2000 with its review scheduled for 2004.