Yesterday Surrey Police announced their plans to relocate their Eastern Divisional Headquarters from Reigate to Leatherhead when the interim lease for Wray Park ends. As many of you will know, the Force relocated to the former Surrey Fire & Rescue Headquarters at Wray Park on a temporary basis following the discovery of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) in the structure of Reigate Police Station.
I know this will be concerning for many residents who very much value the current HQ police presence here in Reigate & Banstead. I spoke directly with Lisa Townsend, the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Surrey, to raise resident’s concerns and to understand more about what this decision means in practical terms for Reigate, Redhill, Banstead and our villages.
It was confirmed by the PCC during our discussion that:
- The R&B front desk, which is currently in Caterham, will be moving back into Reigate & Banstead borough enabling members of the public to access police services locally again.
- The R&B neighbourhood team, which is the key team of officers that deals with crime in our area, will remain based in R&B borough. A building/location is yet to be confirmed for their base, but the PCC will let me know as soon as they have clarity on this. Lisa wants to reassure residents that R&B will always have a local police base and front desk in the borough.
- The existing custody suite in Salfords will remain as is.
- The teams moving out of Reigate to Leatherhead are those that are part of the Eastern Divisional HQ team only, and accordingly, response rates to Reigate & Banstead should not be affected.
In summary, the PCC has assured me that these plans won’t have any impact on the frontline police presence that keeps our communities safe. I will remain in close contact with Lisa as this plan is rolled out, so please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have further questions or concerns.
