Mayor of the West Midlands, Richard Parker has announced a new base in Wolverhampton so he and his staff can be closer to the Black Country communities they serve.
The ‘Collab Hub’, which is located in the Wolverhampton Civic Centre, has been launched on a trial basis following an agreement between the Mayor, the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and the city council.
The base will help WMCA officers work even closer with council colleagues and other partners on projects to improve living standards for local people.
The Hub follows a manifesto pledge by the Mayor to work more collaboratively across the region and have operational bases outside Birmingham. If the trial proves successful, the base, which is being provided free of charge by the council, could be replicated in other parts of the West Midlands.
The Mayor said: " This Collab Hub is about working shoulder to shoulder with our local councils and others to bring real change for local people quickly and effectively.
"I made a commitment when I was elected to explore how to make the work of the Mayor and WMCA more accessible, visible and accountable.
“But I didn’t want any promise of a Black Country office to be tokenistic. It needed to be a useful base that works and delivers for local communities. “I also wanted to make sure it did not cost the taxpayer more money, so I'm delighted we've been able to make this agreement with the council."
Cllr Stephen Simkins, City of Wolverhampton Council Leader, said: “We look forward to welcoming the Mayor and WMCA colleagues to the Civic Centre, demonstrating once again the collaborative nature of how we work as a council.
“The new hub demonstrates our commitment to public sector partnering, and co-locating in this way helps improve operational efficiency for both parties, ensuring we work effectively together for the benefit of our residents.
“It in turn boosts footfall in Wolverhampton city centre, benefitting the local economy.”
The Collab Hub will be located on the first floor of the Wolverhampton Civic Centre in St Peter’s Square and will provide space for the Mayor and up to ten WMCA employees at a time. In return, the WMCA is allocating space at its Birmingham city centre headquarters for any visiting council staff who require it.
It’s not the first time that organisations have chosen the Civic Centre, which is the head office for City of Wolverhampton Council, as a co-location base.
The NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board occupy space and since November more than 500 University of Wolverhampton staff working in areas such as finance, HR, recruitment and marketing have relocated to the Civic Centre in a move to promote ‘public sector partnering.’
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