Staff at Okehampton Police Station are striving to reopen the front enquiry desk by Christmas this year, they told Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez at an official visit last week.

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly was given a rundown of renovation and improvement works which are to be carried out at the station in order to bring it up to standard before it reopens during her visit last Monday morning as part of her latest tour of police stations ­— the third phase of her project to reopen a number of front desks in stations across the constabulary area.

Staff at the station confirmed that front desk will be situated in its former location at the front entrance of the building on Exeter Road. Since it closed to the public on November 1 2014, due to austerity measures, a wall has been built in its place which is due to be knocked down and replaced with a screen. In addition, as parking outside the front of the building is unfeasible, it will remain at the rear of the property with a newly accessible parking bay created at the side of the building. The old custody wall will also be opened up to allow for a level walkway through and around to the front of the building, thus ensuring accessibility for all.

Resurfacing and lining of the car park is set to begin at the end of August, forecast to last for up to three weeks, during which time there will be operational parking only on site. New signage has also been ordered, to be displayed at junction outside the station, with relevant goods signage.

A gate will be erected to prevent people from cutting across the car park as a shortcut and multiple security cameras installed both throughout the building and on its exterior for the safety of staff and members of the public. Further works will see the building repainted and the two interview rooms currently in place knocked into one.

Staff have expressed their hope that the station would be utilised more for further training and conferences once the scheduled work is completed.

Commissioner Hernandez described these renovation works for the front desk’s reopening as “a huge investment in Okehampton” when also considering the reopening of the town railway station in 2021 and West Devon Borough Council having secured funding in January of this year to build a second station — the West Devon Transport Hub — on the eastern edge of the town.

Echoing these sentiments, town mayor Allenton Fisher, who was present with fellow Okehampton town councillor Julie Yelland for the commissioner’s visit, said: “This is showing the public going up and down the hill that the police station is here for them. It’s so important that people have this assurance, with the knowledge the desk is here to stay. Okehampton is growing hugely as a community.”

Renovations and training of new staff members, required to ensure the desk is operational, are aimed to be completed by November at the earliest, however Inspector for West Devon Police Chris Conway stressed that the official reopening date remains fixed as being (no later than) the end of the financial year (April 2024) for the time being. The desk will be open from Monday to Saturday, 10am to 3pm.

In an exclusive interview with the Okehampton Times, Commissioner Hernandez said: “The reopening of Okehampton police station’s front desk is such positive news for the people of the town and the surrounding areas. Reopening is so important in an age where many other services and businesses are closing front desks and moving online.

“For me, this is about making sure the police have public face to our communities and those within them who have been the victims of crime so that we can support them, differentiating us from businesses, organisations or other public services.”

The commissioner’s office has reported that the first stations to have their front desks resinstated ­— Tiverton, Newton Abbot, Truro, Penzance, Bude and Falmouth ­— have seen over 2,600 members of the public use this service, with further funding (confirmed earlier this year) to open another four front offices in the next financial year bringing the total number of front desks open to the public across Devon and Cornwall to 27. The commissioner’s belief is that expanded reopenings by mid-2024, particularly in tourist locations across the two counties, will be helpful during the summer months when crime levels in Devon and Cornwall increase by approximately 10%.

In addition to serving as a medium through which victims of crime can report incidents, members of the public can also seek advice, speak to staff about crime prevention and be referred to support services at the front desk.

Commissioner Hernandez said: ““Six stations were reopened last year and in the first few months of them opening, really serious crimes were reported. We’ve had thousands of people come through the doors, even just to speak with their local officers and say hello. We had one family who wanted to introduce their child into policing so that they weren’t afraid. It’s been successful so far. 

“To sustain the funding of this desk so it does not close, police enquiry officers will be multi-tasking, so they can deal with non-emergency crimes reported online too. When they aren’t busy speaking with people face-to-face, they are able to help those reporting via digital mediums, which ensures good use of this resource for the long-term.”

With the countdown for the front desk to reopen underway, the Okehampton station remains open as normal for appointment or voluntary interviews, with a blue box attached to the outside of the front entrance containing a telephone for all to use which is accorded priority when being used to report crime.