THE £6.7 million refurbishment of a council's HQ has been completed after 16 months.

Midas Constriction carried out the transformation of the three-storey Deane House, home to Taunton Deane Borough Council.

The work was phased to allow the offices to remain open and in use during the project.

As well as renovating the premises, the scheme saw the construction of an entrance lobby, replacement windows, repairs to the roof and external brickwork, the replacement of one lift and the installation of a second and alterations to the car park.

Midas business development director Mike Borkowski said: “We’re delighted to be celebrating the completion of this high-profile project with our customer, Taunton Deane Borough Council.

"The result looks fantastic and has really given the building a new lease of life.

"The success of the project has been driven by the work of the site team liaising closely with the council, its partners, local residents and businesses to ensure what was a complex project ran smoothly, with the minimum of disruption to council services and people living and working locally."

The new reception area opened last July with self-service kiosks and meeting rooms, while Taunton Police opened in the building in December.

Council leader Cllr John Williams said: “I am delighted with these significant improvements to Deane House which reflect our new way of working, modernising what we do to focus even more on tackling customer needs, improving services and saving costs for our communities.

"The building is far more energy efficient, with a flexible working environment for our staff, and a new customer hub which provides a much better experience for our customers making processes more modern and efficient.

"Deane House is a superb local facility within the heart of the community where together with the police we can now offer local people greater convenience by having public services under one roof."

Midas has been chosen by the council to deliver the multi-million pound development of shops, flats, offices and pubs and restaurants on Coal Orchard Car Park.