Key information
Petition presented by: Caroline Pidgeon
Date petition submitted: Wednesday 5 March 2014
Petition presented at: London Assembly Plenary
Summary of petition
“We hereby call on Boris Johnson as the Mayor of London, and the Metropolitan Police, to reverse their decision to close and to sell off, Streatham Police Station - a decision that was taken without any public consultation.
We believe that it is totally unacceptable that a community the size of Streatham, with over 50,000 inhabitants, should be left without a fully-functioning police station. We are very concerned that the closure means much more than the loss of bricks and mortar: it could result in a serious reduction in the number of police officers based in Streatham.
We therefore call for the Streatham Police Station to be re-opened and reinstated as a fully-functioning police station, open to the public 24 hours a day, as it was before this summer.”
Response information
Name of person responding: The Mayor
Response date: Thursday 27 March 2014
“Dear Caroline
Thank you for the petition presented to the London Assembly plenary meeting on 5 March about Streatham Police Station.
In spring 2013 the London-wide consultation on the Police and Crime Plan and Local Access, including the consultation event at Lambeth, covered the future of Streatham Police Station. We explained that the station would not meet the longer term policing needs of the MPS, and that the existing front counter facilities provided there would be replaced at an alternative location. I am happy to say that this is still the situation and work is taking place at 328 Streatham High Road – a short distance from the existing station. This replacement front counter and deployment base is due to be operational by early summer this year and will have the same opening hours as the existing site. The current site will not close until the new station is open.
I am committed to the MPS Local Policing Model and the principle of putting “Bobbies before buildings”. The Police and Crime Plans set out an increase in Safer Neighbourhood police offers of 115- the third highest increase in London. I hope that this will support a continued reduction in crime, which is down 7 per cent over the past year.
I hope that this will reassure your petitioners that the number of neighbourhood police officers in Lambeth is increasing and that we are keeping to the commitment set out last year that Streatham will continue to have a permanent base for its officers and public access for its residents.”