Arundel police station to become “appointment only”

TOWN councillors have voiced fears that Arundel’s police station is to be closed to public callers.

Their concerns follow a review of all 36 Sussex Police stations with front offices, to identify where opening hours could be cut back without adversely affecting the service to the community.

Arundel is one of a number of more rural stations recommended to be open “for appointments only”, although no final decision has yet been taken.

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If the station was to be closed, it could prove embarrassing for Arundel and South Downs MP Nick Herbert, the policing minister, to lose a police station at the heart of his constituency.

Deputy Arundel mayor Anne Harriott told the Gazette: “We are concerned that the police station is not going to be manned in future.

“I know we have to lose things in these difficult times, but there are some frontline things the country does need, and policing is one of them.

“How long will it be before we see a ‘for sale’ sign outside the police station?

“That is what is worrying us.”

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Mrs Harriott raised the issue at last week’s town council finance and general purposes committee meeting, when she reported back on details given by a senior police officer at a meeting of the Joint Downland Area Committee of county, Arun, town and parish councillors.

Another Arundel town councillor, Peter Moss, said the police station was the “natural calling point” for anyone with concerns over incidents in the area.

“It is a focal point people can go to to air their concerns. Arundel does not want to lose a functioning police station.”

Mr Moss said he was concerned that the town council had not been consulted over the proposed change in the police station’s opening hours and that the first mention of it had been at the Downland committee.

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A spokeswoman for Sussex Police Authority said there was no set date for the introduction of the changes in opening times for police stations.

“There is still work to be done on the details surrounding the implementation and so nothing has been decided yet,” she said.

December’s meeting of the police authority supported the findings of the opening hours review and the Chief Constable’s proposals to amend opening hours as a result, “ensuring resources are used effectively to best meet public demand and expectations”. It also backed further work on assessing the future need for police stations.