News

Cuts mean fewer but newer custody suites

By Stephen Lloyd
September 28, 2011

HAMPSHIRE Police is set to splash out £67 million on four new custody centres, including one in Hook.

The force is pushing ahead with plans to cut its custody suites from 14 to six. The move means building four new centres in Hook, Fareham, Newport on the Isle of Wight and Winchester.

On Tuesday (September 27), Hampshire Police Authority, which holds the force’s purse-strings, decided against a plan to lease the four new centres from the private sector at a cost of £86 million in favour of a design and build option, which will cost an estimated £67 million over 30 years.

Twenty-nine cells at Portsmouth Central police station and a 36-cell custody centre at Southampton Central police station would be kept open.

The move comes as the Constabulary battles to save £50 million by 2015 due to government spending cuts.

Hampshire Police Authority chairman Jacqui Rayment said: “It has been identified that we need to improve the custody facilities and it makes sense to have a smaller number of custody suites which are larger.

"It means we can provide modern facilities to ensure detained persons’ safety and save money.”

Assistant chief constable David Pryde added: “Modernising custody and making the whole process more cost effective is at the heart of this project.

“Being able to process criminals far more quickly and get them into court has got to be bad news for anyone who breaks the law.

“It’s true there will be fewer custody suites across the two counties, but the new builds give us the opportunity to update the system and make it more efficient as a whole.

“The centres will bring together the number of custody staff and investigative and interview teams, and will result in police officers spending less time booking in prisoners and more time on the streets or in their core roles. The project is self-financed by the money generated from selling redundant estate.”

Police stations in Fleet and Farnborough will close as part of the major review of operations by Hampshire Constabulary.

The buildings, which house a total of 52 staff, are among 18 stations across the county being put up for sale.

Plans are afoot to relocate Fleet police station to a new one-stop-shop as part of a major redevelopment of Hart District Council’s offices, The Harlington and Fleet Library.

Under the review, Aldershot’s police station will be given a ‘light refurbishment’, while Yateley has also been spared the axe.

The community police station in Hook will be retained, along with Odiham beat office, but that will be subject to review.

The vacant police property in Peel Court, Hartley Wintney, will be sold. Chief constable Alex Marshall vowed: “We will not close any operational police station until we have found alternative accommodation for patrolling officers, the safer neighbourhood teams.

“Talking to partners in the fire service, local authorities and local business, I see only enthusiasm for working jointly and making better use of public buildings. We are not moving out of any community, we will remain in every community – there will be a police presence.”

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Notice the first thing out of Pride's mouth was the matter of cost. If they turfed out all the excess baggage of inspectors and sergeants that swan around police headquarters they would be able to run the existing custody suites efficiently. Save money? Where on god's earth are the going to get funds for that. The new headquarters (Alpha Park) was shelved due to no money. So i guess the funds will come from all the "natural wastage".

HerbertG28, Aldershot
05/10/2011 at 19:31

Trust me, i know that the snail pass of anything to do with Hantspol means you will be reading about this for years to come. Whilst they are cutting cops on the front line and moving them miles from where they need to be (Yateley officers to Farnborough.) The over inflated ranks of Inspector and above will come up with hair brained ideas that are only dreamt up for promotional purposes.

HerbertG28, Aldershot
29/09/2011 at 17:53

Oh come on plodplod..... Fall in line with the PC mob.........too many old bill gets in the way of the 'uman rites' of the good old criminal……

doormon, Aldershot
29/09/2011 at 11:00

Good bye to your local bobby who knows everyone he or she needs too, say hello to band aid policing. Hampshire police can not even run small custody suites properly, let alone four large ones. Sadly the police we used to know and respect have gone...now they have more unpaid part-timers "Specials" as they cost very little, PCSO,s that can't arrest or detain anyone, less real coppers on our streets as they cover such a massive area than ever before.When they say they are shutting stations it means our police cover is further away and thinner and struck in stations doing uneccessary paperwork and custody back-logs. Ask most of the coppers who have been in a few years and they will tell you how run down and poorly managed they are, not to mention de-motivated by the joke courts.Proper police review urgently required.