Closed down police station set to be sold

The front counter of the station in Gordon Road, Corringham was closed to the public in November 2011.

Since then it was jointly used by officers and the Thurrock Youth Offending Service team as a base until November last year.

To progress the sale of the site Essex Police and the PCC intend to seek outline planning permission for residential use of the site.

Gaining planning permission will allow the site to be sold for the best possible price and money generated by the sale can then be used to prevent and fight crime more effectively.

The station is one of several to be sold as the estate is reduced from 80 to approximately 30 buildings.

The current police estate in Essex costs £10million a year in running costs but the buildings would require £30million of maintenance work to bring them up to standard. This money can be better invested in fighting and preventing crime more effectively.

Chief Inspector Richard Baxter, District Commander for Thurrock, said: ‘We know the Corringham community want local, visible policing and Corringham will continue to be policed by dedicated officers.

"These dedicated officers will respond to emergencies, investigate crimes, work to resolve local problems and work alongside partners to protect people from harm and prevent crime occurring.”

Roger Hirst, Police and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said: "We need to invest in a modern police force where officers can spend more time out in their communities not in stations completing paperwork.

"By rationalising our estate and investing in technology we can give our officers the tools to log and register crimes while they are out and about. We can help them become more visible and deliver a better service to the public.”

Residents wishing to visit a police station can do so at Grays which provides a front counter service from 9am to 5pm seven days a week. People can also report crime by phoning 101 or via the Essex Police website www.essex.police.uk