Wanstead and Woodford police stations to be closed under Met plans

Alistair Kleebauer, Senior reporter Wednesday, January 9, 2013
2.43 PM

Wanstead and Woodford police stations will close under plans announced by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime today.

The hopes of thousands of residents who petitioned to keep both stations open appear to have been dashed by the announcement.

It was already proposed last year that the stations in Spratt Hall Road, Wanstead, and High Road, Woodford Green, should lose their front counters.

The proposals are part of the Mayor of London’s draft police and crime plan which will now be subject to an eight-week consultation period.

The London deputy mayor for policing Stephen Greenhalgh and the Met’s assistant commissioner Simon Byrne will host a series of town hall meetings including in Redbridge Town Hall, on February 11, to discuss the plans.

The Met needs to save £514million from its £3.4billion budget by 2015.

The force proposes opening contact points in locations including supermarkets, council buildings and libraries across the capital.

Other commitments in the plan include maintaining police numbers in the capital at around 32,000; an additional 2,600 officers in Safer Neighbourhood Teams and the creation of a £1m crime prevention fund from which new safer neighbourhood boards in every borough, from 2014, will be able to bid to fund local projects.

More to follow.