Police station closure costings defended

Jemima Bland, parliamentary Lib Dem candidate for East Worthing and Shoreham, put in a freedom of information request, which revealed the figures are not yet known.

She criticised the police and said the revelation blew a hole in the financial case for closing the station.

In a statement, Mrs Bourne explained £40,000 was the average cost of providing a replacement partnership or joint site for local policing and public contact. The figure was based on costs established for the recent moves to shared facilities in Hove and Eastbourne.

She added: “The final cost of alternative provision for Shoreham Police Station has not yet been identified.

“However, before any decision is made, a fully-costed proposal will be completed so I can be confident that the right decision is being taken to meet the objectives of the police estates strategy.

“A significant proportion of staff currently based at Shoreham deal with fixed penalty notices and are not responsible for the delivery of local neighbourhood policing. They will be provided with alternative accommodation elsewhere within the force estate at no additional cost.”

The cost of parking for vehicles would be included as part of the overall provision.

“My pledge to the people of Sussex is that I will not close any building until a better or suitable alternative has been found,” Mrs Bourne said.