New offices for Dorchester Town Council will be built to the rear of the Municipal Buildings in North Square.

Dorset Council has granted planning permission for the move which will eventually see the former offices, further down the Square, put up for sale.

The new offices will be shared with Dorchester Arts who are expected to take over the management of the refurbished Municipal Buildings later in the year – offering, when restrictions allow, a wide range of activities.

The total cost of the revamp for the buildings and the new offices has been put at around £2million although town councillors recently agreed additional spending on the project.

The planning consent includes permission for a biomass boiler which a handful of people have objected to, claiming that it will add to air pollution in the area. The claim has been denied by the town council who say using the new boiler will help meet its climate change commitments.

Parts of the existing building date back to the mid-1800s and is described as 'a landmark in the conservation area' and by the historian Pevsner as the 'visual climax' to views along the high streets.

Three objections had been lodged against the proposed changes, mainly relating to the biomass boiler, with claims that it would be noisy and smelly, would have a negative impact on air quality and might open up the area for further biomass developments.

Dorset Council officers concluded that that the extension would be in keeping with the rest of the building with the boiler having the potential to supply other, nearby, buildings. It's environmental health officers said that with the proposed mitigation measures, the boiler would be acceptable in the area.

Conservation officers also supported the proposals, reporting: "Conservation are broadly supportive of the proposals and consider that they can be achieved without resulting in harm to the significance of the building or to the setting of identified designated heritage assets. It is considered that the proposal would not adversely affect the character and appearance of the Grade II listed building, nor the setting of surrounded listed buildings."

Part of the planning consent allows for the recording of anything of archaeological significance found on the site during the works.