Police front office facilities to close in Chelmsley Wood

CHANGES: Front office facilities are being reduced
across the West Midlands

WEST Midlands Police are closing their front office facilities in Chelmsley Wood as part of the latest round of cost-cutting measures.

The force confirmed that the Bluebell Centre, which is open weekdays and on Saturday mornings, was one of several that will be shutting to the public.

In an announcement today, it was confirmed that only ten front offices would remain open across the region and only one – in Birmingham city centre – would be staffed 24 hours a day.

Elsewhere in the borough, Shirley Station will also be closing its doors to the public, while Homer Road, which currently operates around the clock, will see its hours dramatically reduced.

Some residents have already registered their concern about the decision to remove front office services altogether, only two years after they were moved out of Chelmsley Wood Police Station into the nearby shopping centre.

At the time, the decision to share premises with Solihull Council’s Walk-In centre was hailed as a new way of working for the police.

Reacting to today’s announcement, Councillor Chris Williams (Green, Chelmsley Wood) tweeted: “Very bad news. Only two years after promise [that the] desk would be future of police.”

David Jamieson, the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, defended the move, arguing that these days the public preferred to contact officers via phone or the internet.

“The current service doesn’t meet people’s preferences and is becoming increasingly expensive as fewer and fewer people use it,” he said.

“We need to deploy staff to call centres where possible to free up resources that keep police officers where people want them: on the street, preventing crime and catching criminals.”

The changes will be phased in around the region next year.

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