Police station closures given green light – with one Black Country base set to go by summer
Controversial plans to shut eight police stations across the Black Country have been rubber stamped – with one site set to close this summer.
West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) David Jamieson has signed off on the scheme, which was put forward by the region's Chief Constable and will see 24 buildings go across the West Midlands to save £5m.
Mr Jamieson said the closures were necessary to save money for the cash-strapped force, and insisted that officers would remain a presence in the region's communities.
He also hit back at claims that the decision over which stations to close had been 'politically motivated'.
He said today: "Closing a building does not equate to closing down policing."
The scheme will now go out to a full public consultation for each individual site.
First to go will be Prouds Lane, Bilston, which will close in the summer.
Sedgley police station will shut in summer 2019, and stations in Oldbury, Aldridge, Tipton and Wednesfield will be gone by the middle of 2020.
Smethwick police station will close in summer 2021, while Wednesbury will shut the following year.
Mr Jamieson said that it was right to close down 'tired old buildings' in order to protect officer numbers.
"We are looking at efficiency. We are cutting unnecessary costs. We are making sure that all front desks we have at the moment will be repositioned.
"We will make sure that police teams are in the community where they need to be."
Mr Jamieson has faced widespread criticism over the closures, with concerns raised over the consultation process.
He said that 'a full public engagement' would take place for each site, adding: "No station will close unless there is proper alternative provision in place.
"Today is the beginning of the process rather than the end."
He was also accused of targetting closures in Tory areas by Sutton Coldfield's Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell.
Mr Jamieson said it was 'manifestly and totally untrue' that there was any party political bias in the decisions, and has demanded an apology from Mr Mitchell.
The scheme will also see Wolverhampton’s Bilston Street police station and West Bromwich’s station refurbished, while Brierley Hill police station will be rebuilt.
This year WMP will see its first increase in funding since 2010, with an extra £9.5m raised through council tax equating to a 1.7 per cent spike in funding.
