ABOUT 500 jobs are to be lost
to Winchester when Hampshire
Police quits its HQ on
Romsey Road for a new site in
Chandler's Ford.
The decision to move to the
new £9.2m HQ came after the
force saw repeated attempts
to get planning permission to
overhaul the dated building in
Winchester rejected.
More than 500 officers and
staff will relocate to a currently
unoccupied building in
Eastleigh's Alpha Park within
two years, making it the home
of both the county's police and
fire services.
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Winchester civic leaders
reacted with disappointment.
Jim Sawyer, chairman of the
city's chamber of commerce,
said: "It's disastrous. It is
ridiculous that the police HQ
is lost to the city. It can't do it
any good. It is more employment
going from the city.
"It all started with the whohaaing'
over the redevelopment
of the building and the
city council not letting the
police do it," said Mr Sawyer
referring to the planners'
rejection of the plan to re-clad
the building in glass.
Mr Sawyer said the
approval of a scheme for
around 294 homes on the site
was a green light for the
police to move.
"The city council hasn't
exactly resisted it. It is a sad
day," he said.
The city council had been
hoping to help provide another
site within the district.
Council leader George
Beckett said: "I'm disappointed
that we have been unable
to supply a site. It demonstrates
we need to re-examine
our rigid planning policies.
"The loss of any significant
employer is likely to have a
detrimental impact on local
trade."
The withdrawal of hundreds
of jobs in Winchester has few
precedents in recent years;
comparable job losses include
the collapse of the Conder
engineering firm and Webbs
Foods, in the 1990s.
Unison, the union representing
many of the 500 staff
at the Romsey Road HQ, saw
good and bad points.
While employees faced the
disruption of moving offices,
the union said the current site
had many shortcomings.
Kathy Symonds, Hampshire
and Isle of Wight Police
branch secretary said: "As
with any major change, I suspect
there will be some
unrest.
"On the plus side, Winchester
is a pain in the neck to get
into every day, and the accommodation
is past its best, and
the parking there is abysmal,
so we're hoping there will be
some improvements."
Hampshire Police Authority
said it would have cost at least
£11m to bring the existing
HQ, most of which dates back
to the 1960s, up to modern
standards. The police have
used the current building
since 1966, however there has
been a police presence on the
site since the 1800s.
Up to £15m could be needed
to update the currently
unoccupied new building,
which is on Electron Way, off
School Lane, Chandler's Ford.
Hampshire Chief Constable
Paul Kernaghan said: "The
current headquarters building
requires extensive investment
and it has proved impossible
to secure planning permission
to stay."
In 2005 a government planning
inspector, Clive Hughes,
dismissed the county Police
Authority's appeal against the
city council's decision to
reject its application to reclad
the 1960s tower in glass.
The force then decided to
relocate the 500 Romsey Road
staff and sell the 2.3-hectare
site to developers.
If a residential scheme
goes ahead, it would be the
single largest housing project
in Winchester since the conversion
of Peninsula Barracks
in the early 1990s.
Martin Tod, Liberal Democrat
Prospective parliamentary
candidate for the new Winchester
Constituency, which
will include Chandler's Ford
after the next General Election,
said: "Overall, this is
good opportunity for Winchester.
It's never great to lose a
big employer, but we urgently
need more houses for local
people. Most people at the
police headquarters commute
in, so the move should reduce traffic."
* What do you think of the move? Are you affected? Add your comments below.
Posted by: Former Police employee, Hampshire on 12:51pm Thu 26 Jun 08
Well done prospective Parliamentary bloke:
let's look at logic.
The site does not have parking for five hundred cars; staff do car share, catch train and some even cycle. Let's suggest that there is car parking for some 250 cars - a generous guess.
Then 300 homes, each with at least one car, replaces the building. Ergo: congestion remains at equilibrium.
Is the local trade that is going to suffer. That and the issue of employment.
Well done prospective Parliamentary bloke:
let's look at logic.
The site does not have parking for five hundred cars; staff do car share, catch train and some even cycle. Let's suggest that there is car parking for some 250 cars - a generous guess.
Then 300 homes, each with at least one car, replaces the building. Ergo: congestion remains at equilibrium.
Is the local trade that is going to suffer. That and the issue of employment.
Posted by: Martin Tod, Winchester on 8:51am Mon 30 Jun 08
A above average proportion of people living in Winchester walk, cycle or use public transport to get to work. There's no reason to believe this won't be the case with a city centre development like this one - indeed you'd expect the proportion to be higher.
As far as local trade is concerned, people spend most money where they live, not where they work. Some businesses will be hurt by fewer people popping out to shop at lunchtime, but more will be helped by 294 more families living and shopping in the heart of Winchester.
And finally on jobs: this isn't like a business going bust. No-one's being fired. The jobs aren't disappearing. They're moving 6 miles down the road to Chandler's Ford. I'd be surprised if any police employees living in Winchester felt forced to move out as a result.
A above average proportion of people living in Winchester walk, cycle or use public transport to get to work. There's no reason to believe this won't be the case with a city centre development like this one - indeed you'd expect the proportion to be higher.
As far as local trade is concerned, people spend most money where they live, not where they work. Some businesses will be hurt by fewer people popping out to shop at lunchtime, but more will be helped by 294 more families living and shopping in the heart of Winchester.
And finally on jobs: this isn't like a business going bust. No-one's being fired. The jobs aren't disappearing. They're moving 6 miles down the road to Chandler's Ford. I'd be surprised if any police employees living in Winchester felt forced to move out as a result.
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