The signs have long gone and the former Sandbach HQ of Cheshire East Council, Westfields, lies empty.

The prestigious Middlewich Road building was vacated by Cheshire East two years ago in December and is waiting to be turned into a new SEND school.

But Cheshire East Council say this school won't be up and running until September 2028 - several years after it was vacated by the council in 2024.

In the meantime, the empty building is costing thousands of pounds each year to keep ready for its new use as Sandbach resident, Steve McDermott discovered through a Freedom of Information Request.

By the end of the 2026/27 year, a staggering £609,352 will have been racked up in a variety of costs from business rates to security, electricity, gas, water and repairs.

Steve said: "It's a total waste of money for council tax payers. How is an empty building costing this much money?

"Cheshire East decided after knocking the old building down and putting up this new one to save money, reduce the amount of office space it needed and make better use of its remaining buildings.

"What's happening now is ridiculous. This money could be used to fund other projects and make so many people's lives better. Instead it's being spent on an empty building.

"Surely savings could be made with these costs. We need to know in more detail how this money is being spent."

But Cheshire East Council say the costs are "unavoidable costs associated with maintaining a vacant building of this size" and are needed to protect the council's investment and stop the building deteriorating.

A spokesperson for Cheshire East Council said: "The council has agreed funding to create a new SEND school at Westfields in Sandbach, the council's former headquarters.

"The site will be developed into an all‑through special school offering 140 places for children with a wide range of additional needs, subject to further planning and statutory processes.

"It is currently expected that the school should be up and running by September 2028.

"While there are unavoidable costs associated with maintaining a vacant building of this size, these are necessary to protect the council's investment and ensure the site can be transformed into a new specialist school.

"Allowing the building to deteriorate would risk significantly higher costs in the future and could delay the delivery of much-needed SEND provision for Cheshire East families."

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