Surrey Police announce interim move for Reigate teams to former SFRS HQ

Following the discovery of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) within the construction of Reigate Police Station, Surrey Police will relocate officers and staff to Wray Park for at least the next 18-24 months until longer-term decisions and plans are realised.

Wray Park is the former Surrey Fire & Rescue Service (SFRS) HQ in Alma Road – located around a mile from Reigate Police Station.

Following advice provided by independent structural engineers Surrey Police vacated areas of our Eastern Divisional HQ which couldn’t be supported by Acrow-props by the agreed date of 3 November. This process saw the moving of the public front counter to Caterham Police Station, and the relocation of other teams to nearby police sites, with others remote working.

Now that the immediate concern for safety has been mitigated, the Force has been assessing the working environments in which officers and staff are accommodated. “In any business continuity situation the circumstances can be challenging, even more so where a building is removed from use in such a short space of time,” T/Superintendent Jak Bowers said. “We’re really proud of how our teams have responded with agility and professionalism to such a fast-paced change whilst maintaining a smile and commitment to continuing their service to the public.

“We’ve been reviewing our short-term plans to ensure that our systems are working efficiently, that offices aren’t overcrowded, and that there is an adequate mix of open plan and more confidential spaces for the different types of work our teams undertake.”

“It’s with this in mind that we’ve been engaging with the Surrey Fire & Rescue Service and Surrey County Council and are concluding legal arrangements in order to secure space at Wray Park for the next 18-24 months,” said Maureen Cherry, Surrey Police’s Estates Strategy Director. “The public, together with our officers and staff, rightly want to know what the future looks like for Surrey Police. I hope that this update provides confidence that our teams will continue to deliver an excellent police service to residents in the east of Surrey, while we properly consider our estate map for the division’s needs.”

Police and Crime Commissioner, Lisa Townsend said: “This has been a tough time for our policing teams based at Reigate and I want to say thank you to all of them for their understanding while this challenging situation was addressed.

“I am really pleased that we have found a temporary solution that will not only provide a suitable working environment for our teams but will also mean we can maintain our policing footprint in the local area.”

Surrey Police is committing to work closely with SFRS to understand how they minimised the impact on local residents near to Wray Park as they responded to emergencies from the site, and we will update on these considerations in due course.

A timetable for relocating to Wray Park has not been finalised at this time, but it is expected that a phased relocation will be completed before Christmas.

The front counter service will remain at Caterham Police Station for this time as there are no suitable locations for this service at Wray Park.