Council confirms Coroner’s move to Royal Exchange
Manchester City Council has applied for listed building consent to decant its Coroner’s Court and services to the Royal Exchange, confirming its relocation from the Town Hall as refurbishment works are set to begin.
Place North West first reported the Coroner’s Court was looking at space in the Royal Exchange in September this year, with the council looking to secure around 12,000 sq ft overlooking Marks & Spencer on the Exchange Street side of the building.
The council has now confirmed it has leased the Exchange floor of the building, and has submitted a planning application to convert the existing office space, which was refurbished in 2016.
Proposed fit-out to the building include a jury room, two courtrooms, meeting rooms, a witness room, a medical examiner’s office, a coroner’s office, and further offices and facilities for staff and visitors.
Furniture and fittings from the existing Coroner’s Court in the town hall will also be relocated to the Royal Exchange.
Entrance to the building will be via a reception on Cross Street, and the Coroner’s Court is expected to complete its move to the Royal Exchange in spring next year.
A move was first mooted in a report to the council in September. It is one of a number of departments that will relocate as refurbishment works start on the Town Hall, as part of the £330m Our Town Hall project.
The council has already rented space at Bridgewater House on Whitworth Street for three years, while a number of departments and services will relocate to the Town Hall Extension and Central Library.