Offices

We were appointed to construct the new £23 million headquarters for North Tyneside Area Command, replacing the existing police station in Alexandra Street, Wallsend.

The building provides an integrated working area for circa of 400 people including police officers, community support officers and police staff, support and training facilities as well as a large custody suite with 40 modern cells.

The entrance leads directly into a three storey, glazed concourse which allows natural light into the building.  The largely open plan office has bridge links across the concourse which provides future adaptability and flexibility for officers to respond quickly and efficiently to the constantly changing needs of present and future policing requirements.

The custody suite is based on a radial plan model to allow direct line of vision from the control centre to all operational areas of the facility.  The working environment for custody staff fully addresses the requirement for natural lighting and good acoustic control throughout, without comprising upon operational security.

The design has incorporated environmental and sustainability requirements and has been formally credited with a BREEAM Excellent rating. 
Such features include:
• External landscaping with a rich variation of planting to broaden biodiversity and enhance ecological value
• Solar shading to control glare and eradicate heat gains from south facades and roof glazing
• Solar heating panels for domestic hot water consumption
• Automatic sensor control and daylight dimming installed on lighting to reduce power demand
• Rainwater harvesting to filter and reuse rainwater, with flow regulation, to prevent waste

This project marks the start of an ambitious programme by Northumbria Police Authority to upgrade facilities in North Tyneside. We are confident that following the completion of this project we will be in an even stronger position to win some of the other projects that are planned.