His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales has opened King's Lynn Police Station following a £3.1 million transformation project.

The Prince of Wales toured the new facilities and met the officers and staff on Thursday 29 November, before officially declaring the building open.

Pick Everard and Morgan Sindall Construction and Infrastructure delivered the project.

The St James Street building now has improved facilities for response and Safer Neighbourhood Team officers, forensic services, criminal investigation department (CID), offender rehabilitation teams and multi-agency teams.

Paul Darlow, regional director at Pick Everard – which provided full, multi-disciplinary services for the project – said: "We are delighted to have worked on transforming such a significant building in the heart of King's Lynn into a state-of-the-art station, which caters for modern policing needs.

"The original police station, built between 1953 and 1955, was in need of modernisation. The works have given the building a new lease of life on the inside while its historic exterior has been maintained for years to come. This modernisation has enabled the police force to provide an enhanced service to the community, while also delivering greater cost efficiencies.

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"The original police station was too big for the force's current requirements so it was decided that the building needed to be reduced and remodelled to provide modern, high-quality accommodation for its officers with lots of natural daylight.

"We have designed a contemporary building, which features texturised stainless steel cladding and treated hardwood. Buff brick and feature stone cornices were also incorporated into the designs, sitting within the building's facade to ensure it complements nearby buildings.

"The open-plan office space allows the police force to work more closely together, while special side rooms for victims and witnesses provide privacy and protection when needed. There is also a conference room with video calling technology and hot desks, giving officers the opportunity to work remotely."

Saul Humphrey, managing director of Morgan Sindall Construction and Infrastructure's east region, added: "King's Lynn Police Station is a key asset for the force and we're pleased and proud to have utilised our project team's expertise to deliver this future-fit station, which will enable our policewomen and men to carry out their duties in a purpose-built environment.

"It was a great honour to welcome The Prince of Wales to King's Lynn and we hope he enjoyed his tour of this excellent station."

The project took almost a year to complete.

Staff were housed in temporary accommodation during the work, before moving back into the building earlier this year.

(CM/MH)