Guildford Borough Council has awarded a contract worth £38.4m to McLaren Construction to build a new operational and administrative hub for the council as part of the Weyside Urban Village.
Three new buildings will provide a centralised location for waste collection, fleet maintenance, MoT testing, housing repairs, parks and countryside services, engineering services and the town’s museum archive.
The new facilities, to be built on an old landfill site, will provide improved facilities for staff and for the delivery of council services.
The depot has been designed using a ‘fabric first’ approach to maximise energy efficiency and reduce ongoing maintenance costs. Included in the design are a combination of blue and brown roof systems, air source heat pumps and solar photovoltaic panels.
The new depot is an early contribution to the Slyfield Area Regeneration Programme, now known as the Weyside Urban Village, which will be a mixed-use development of approximately 1,500 homes along with employment and community uses on one of the largest strategic sites in the Guildford local plan.
The site for the new depot is on previously unused scrubland east of the Slyfield Industrial Estate, now accessible via a new road and bordered by green spaces, the A3 and the River Wey. Once a waste landfill site, it has required clearance and decontamination. Works were also required to build up the site level above the Burpham water main, which crosses the site.
McLaren Construction’s managing director for industrial and logistics, David Gavin, said: “At a time of limited budgets, the new depot delivers comfortable and attractive working environments for a wide range of council functions while also achieving great value for money. It should have a long and useful life for the council, adapting easily as the range of services and technologies change.”
Guildford Borough Council deputy leader Tom Hunt, who is lead councillor for regeneration, said: “Relocating the current depot will release valuable land for the development of much-needed new housing in our borough.
“Over the past six months, we’ve worked closely with McLaren Construction during a robust and thorough design process. This means we’re well-prepared before the construction of this important project begins.
“The new facility has been designed with input from the staff who will be based there, and a focus on sustainability and improving operational efficiency. The buildings will use less energy, less water and significantly reduce our carbon emissions. The inclusion of electric charging bays for vehicles will also support a transition to a greener fleet. I’m delighted that construction can now begin.”
McLaren’s subcontractor team includes
Works are due to complete in summer 2026.