WEST Somerset District Council meetings will soon be held in Williton's Red Cross Centre as the authority battles to accommodate staff forced to leave an ageing temporary building. Planning staff are due to take over the existing council chamber "in the next few weeks" after serious concerns were raised about the electrical safety of the planning building and its general condition. Chief executive Tim Howes said a thorough electrical check would soon be carried out on the temporary building, which has already exceeded its expected life expectancy by more than a decade. Mr Howes stressed that none of the electrical systems posed an immediate threat, but the overall condition of the building had compounded the situation. He said: "There has been a deterioration in the building's fabric, including rot in the window frames and surrounds and the ingress of water into the building from the internal rainwater pipes. "In many places in the building mould has taken hold given the ideal conditions for growth. "The effect of leaking and draughty windows and inadequate heating, together with water ingress, has resulted in an extremely poor working environment for staff." He said the planning building had been moved onto site in 1974 and had been due to be used for up to 20 years. Although maintenance had lengthened its working life, the building was now deemed to be well beyond repair. "Given the urgency to take action arising from the increased health and safety risks to staff and the public from the building, plans are in place to discontinue the use of the building within the next few weeks. "This will involve transferring nine finance staff from Williton and Minehead and transferring 15 planning staff to the main building on the Williton site," Mr Howes said. He said the staff move to the main office had only been possible due to the authority's purchase of the Red Cross Centre lease earlier this year which would enable the centre to be used as a meeting place. However, he stressed the "entrenchment" to the main Williton council offices was itself only a "temporary matter" due to the condition of that building and the authority's "imminent" centralisation onto one site. He said the staff transfer would have some capital costs as new office equipment would have to be bought to replace the "kitchen units" originally installed in the planning building. Members of the council's cabinet are due to discuss a report on the use of the Red Cross Centre at their meeting on Monday. Members will be told it will be a "tight fit" in the centre with space for a maximum of 40 councillors and staff plus 15 members of the public.