Newton-le-Willows Police Station plans revealed

Plans drawn up by AHR Architects outline a custom-built, accessible, and sustainable police station specifically designed for modern policing.

St Helens Council will consider Merseyside Police’s application to build a replacement police station in Earlestown.

According to the application, the building would contain a public enquiry office, an interview room, and a waiting room, as well as sufficient office space for staff.

The earmarked site is a surface-level car park off Market Street in Newton-le-Willows, only 50 metres northeast of the existing police station.

A replacement is required as the existing police station is outdated and inefficient, having first opened in the 1970s.

There will be 15 police community support officers and three GEO staff working out of the police station.

Merseyside’s police and crime commissioner Emily Spurrell said: “We believe this is the best solution to ensure officers and staff have the right facilities in the right location to serve the community of Newton-le-Willows.

“Following a significant amount of work to review all the options, it has been assessed that it will be more cost-effective to replace the current building with a new high-quality, accessible, custom-built station which is fit for purpose and more sustainable.”

The project is part of Merseyside Police’s wider 12-year Estate Strategy to update police services in the region.

Spurrell added: “I’m pleased that as part of our 12-year plan to transform and modernise Merseyside Police’s buildings, we can now submit a carefully thought-through application to take these plans forward, proposing a new police station which is respectful of the rich cultural heritage of the are on the same site as the existing building.”

As a result of the estate strategy, more than £21m is expected to be recouped from the sale of 11 old and unused stations, including Canning Place, and smaller local stations in Bromborough, Birkenhead, Wallasey, and Ainsdale.

By selling these sites, an estimated £2.4m will be saved on the running costs of the police estate.

Chief constable of Merseyside Police Serena Kennedy said: “It is vital officers and staff are able to work from stations that are fit for purpose so that we can meet the needs of the communities we serve.

“The PCC’s commitment to refreshing the policing estate is a welcome boost to our officers and staff who have been working from ageing police stations that are no longer fit for purpose.”

“The building of the new station at Newton-le-Willows, a facility purpose-built for the modern world, reinforces our commitment to putting local communities at the heart of everything we do now, and in the future.”

AHR Architects is also the planning consultant for the project.