Gloucestershire Police Authority Confirms Future of More Police Stations

Thursday September 29, 2010

Gloucestershire Police Authority has made decisions about the future of four more police stations across the county.

Following a period of public consultation throughout February and March, the Constabulary announced the closure and sale of 13 stations earlier this year.

We have now opened 11 Police Points in areas where stations have closed, and further Police Points are due to open in the future. 

Four other buildings required further discussion to take place to ensure that the best possible solution was found to reshape policing in Gloucestershire; increasing visibility and maintaining the best possible accessibility for the public.

With an £18m budget reduction over the next four years, the Constabulary has been working to identify where this money can be saved, whilst maintaining an excellent service to the public.  

Initial proposals involved moving police officers to the nearest large police station or moving the policing presence to a library or other public building to allow for the sale of the existing police station. In every scenario the communities will continue to have the same daily policing presence as before – just provided from a different base.

After thorough consideration of all of the options presented by the communities affected, decisions have now been made in relation to each of the following stations:

Bishops Cleeve – Police station to be closed and a Police Point opened in the village library.

Cheltenham Road East – To remain open pending further consideration.

Whaddon – Police station to close and Police Points to be set up in Folly House, Folly Lane, St Pauls and in the Whaddon, Lynworth and Priors Neighbourhood Project building, Clyde Crescent, Whaddon.

Winchcombe – Share accommodation with the Town Council with a Police Point in the Abbey Fields Community Centre.

Cllr Rob Garnham, Chair of Gloucestershire Police Authority, said: “The process of reviewing our estate could have been very painful, and of course it was never going to be easy to determine which police stations should close.

“However, we’ve found the public of Gloucestershire very understanding of the situation we are in.

“Our communities have not only commented on our proposals, but in many cases have suggested and offered different venues for our officers to work from, which is a marvellous indication of the community spirit in the county.

“We’ve listened to all the views put forward and have carefully considered our presence in every part of the county. Inevitably some people will be disappointed, but I can reassure everyone that even where a police station is closing, we will still provide a visible and accessible policing presence.

“We’re also very grateful to those bodies, such as Town Councils and the County Council, who have offered us space in their facilities to help us maintain that presence.”

Chief Constable Tony Melville said: “The estates review has been a very in depth and carefully considered process.

“We have been clear throughout, however, that we not only need to change the way we delivery policing, we want to change the way we deliver policing in order to provide a more responsive, visible and accessible service.

“While we may not have our own buildings in certain areas any more, we will still maintain a real visible policing presence in those communities in order to respond to local issues and work with communities to keep them safe from harm.”