Work on a new divisional police headquarters (HQ) for Lancashire Constabulary in Blackpool is now complete.

The three-storey facility, which cost more than £20 million, has been built by Willmott Dixon on a 10,000 sq m site on the outskirts of Blackpool.

The building will serve as the new HQ for the police force's West Division and has been designed by property and construction consultancy McBains, who provided architecture, mechanical, electrical, and civil and structural engineering support to Willmott Dixon.

Overall the development, which replaces the West Division's existing base on Bonny Street, will provide a base for local policing and immediate response teams as well as a public enquiry desk, investigations hub and 42 custody cells.

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Mark Baseby, Director at McBains, said: "It's great news for Lancashire Constabulary and the wider community that officers will start moving into the new state of the art headquarters over the next few weeks.

"The external appearance of the building takes its cues from Blackpool and the vibrant seaside environment with the use of colour and form derived from the sea and sand.  The internal central atrium space is known as the Promenade.

"The essence of the scheme is the interface of three contrasting building types and fusing them together in an efficient and flexible way. This will provide an improved environment for staff and detainees, while delivering important efficiencies for the force."

Matt Horn, Chief Superintendent of the Lancashire Constabulary, said: "The new West Division Police Headquarters is a massive improvement to the facilities we had at Bonny Street, which were very dated and simply no longer fit for purpose.

"These new facilities ensure we are well placed to deliver our service to communities, from an operating centre that delivers a modern working environment for our staff who work so hard to keep the area safe."

(LM/MH)