The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, is announcing plans that will see him deliver on his long-standing pledge, to retain a police station in Sutton Coldfield.
The Commissioner says he is pleased to reveal, that neighbourhood and emergency response officers will relocate to a police station on Anchorage Road, a stone’s throw from the current police station on Lichfield Road.
The Lichfield Road station is on the market, but no sale will complete until the new police station is refurbished, made fit for purpose and the officers and staff have moved in.
The new Anchorage Road police station will be a base for neighbourhood and response officers. It will also have a front desk and be open to the public. A blue police lantern will be above the front door.
The move is expected to be complete in 2025.
The PCC has committed to ensuring that any decision on a sale, is about delivering value to the community and the local area, and that the money raised from the sale of the current site will be reinvested to improve frontline policing.
At the moment, less than a quarter of the space inside the current station is used. That is not effective or efficient and it does not provide the tax payers of Sutton Coldfield and the wider West Midlands with value for money. It is underutilised after huge cuts to police numbers since 2010, with the force still at least 800 officers and 500 Police Community Support Officers down on 14 years ago.
The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, said: “I am pleased to announce that I am delivering on my long-standing pledge, to retain a police station in the heart of Sutton Coldfield.
“My plan will ensure that Sutton Coldfield retains a police station, that is open to the public and that people will be able to attend, speak to a police officer and report crime. The new police station, on Anchorage Road, is right next to the current police station. It will therefore be convenient, for members of the local community to access it.
“The new police station will be a base for the local neighbourhood policing team and for a dedicated emergency response team. That will ensure officers remain within the community they serve, which is exactly where they need to be.
“Sutton Coldfield will continue to have a reassuring, strong and visible West Midlands Police presence based in the town centre, that will be committed and dedicated to preventing and tackling crime and to keeping people, families, businesses and the local community, safe and secure.”
Back to News Archive