A brand new centralised police hub to switch “getting old” custody suites all through County Durham has been delayed.
Durham Police’s new centre in Thinford was resulting from open within the spring to switch 4 suites together with in Bishop Auckland and Darlington.
Its opening has now been pushed again till the summer season of 2024, with the power blaming “monetary pressures.”
The brand new hub can even have forensic and investigative amenities.
Different custody centres resulting from shut are in Peterlee and Durham Metropolis.
The choice to shut the regional suites got here after government inspectors highlighted “the poor physical conditions” in some sites in 2019.
The power’s Labour Police and Crime Commissioner, Pleasure Allen, mentioned: “The hub will home the entire forces’ detainees in trendy, protected cell lodging and might be a extra environment friendly and efficient technique of managing custody and detention.”
She mentioned the delay had been brought on by inflation and monetary pressures, however that the undertaking was based mostly on a “fastened value and important monetary financial savings can be made” as soon as the brand new web site opened.
Robert Potts, a councillor for Evenwood and Conservative PCC candidate at subsequent yr’s election, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he was in opposition to the transfer to centralise providers.
“There’s hardly any cops left on the road in the mean time and my concern is there might be even much less as soon as this major custody suite is opened,” Mr Potts mentioned.
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