Emergency police hubs to be axed in estates shake-up

As part of a new estates strategy, set to be signed off in November, the number of police response hubs will be slashed from 10 to eight.

The force had initially planned to close four hubs, but is now expected to keep facilities open in Bloxwich and Stechford following a review.

Emergency response hubs are sites where officers are based to respond to urgent requests for help, including riots and major crimes.

Under the plans, officers will be based in Wolverhampton, Dudley (currently Brierley Hill), Bournville Lane, Coventry Central, Chelmsley Wood and Park Lane, as well as in Stechford and Bloxwich.

Sandwell and North Birmingham will lose their hubs.

The review into the force's controversial estates programme, which could see several Black Country police stations close, has been called by West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Simon Foster.

It follows widespread opposition to plans to close stations including Oldbury, Wednesfield, Tipton and Aldridge.

A report presented to the PCC's strategic board meeting recommended keeping eight hubs rather than six because the force was taking on new officers as part of the Government's uplift programme.

The move would also reduce the time it takes officers to respond to crime, it added.

Once complete, the estates programme is expected to save West Midlands Police £5million a year in running and maintenance costs.

According to the report, it will also save £24m in backlog maintenance costs and more than £40m from the sale of sites, with the cash invested in projects such as the new Integrated Control Centre in Aston and the proposed Black Country headquarters in Dudley.

The report says: "The release of buildings and extensive refurbishment/re-build of the remaining estate, together with the effective elimination of the current backlog maintenance was to have a net cost of approximately £56m in the 2018 strategy financial model.

"However, the delay of over 18 months caused by the pandemic means that costs will be inflated more than originally planned."

Details on sites that are to be offloaded are set to be revealed at a meeting in November, when the PCC will give his formal response to the plans.

Conservative MP Wendy Morton, who has been fighting against the proposed closure of Aldridge Police Station, said she welcomed a "broad agreement" from the PCC to consult over the plans.

The Aldridge-Brownhills MP said: "The consultation on the future of our local police station must be meaningful and must fully present the alternatives which are available to ensure we retain a local police base on the eastern flank of the Walsall borough.

"The residents and local businesses of Aldridge deserve to keep a local police base and we need to retain a police station in the village of Aldridge, whilst welcoming proposed consultation we must now see a proper consultation plan and timetable due to impact that the proposed closure has right across my constituency."

Under the plans, the four Black Country boroughs will each keep one police station that is open to the public.