Relocation of Police Head Quarters to Green Street Car Park - Ministerial Response - 22 February 2013

Findings

Comments

Key Finding 1 – Future expansion: The Panel  remains  unconvinced  that  there will not be a need at some point in the future  to  look  for  additional accommodation for the Police Force as new  operational  needs  emerge.  While this may not be an argument against the current plans at Green Street, the Panel believes  that  the  major  disadvantage that  the  site  does  not  offer  any possibility of future expansion ought to be acknowledged.

It  is  not  accepted  that  the  need  for additional accommodation in the future would  be  inevitable'.  The  Panel  has provided  no  evidence  to  support  this statement.

The  Panel's  report  identifies  the evidence  provided  by  the  States  of Jersey Police about the nature of future policing, in particular the emphasis on embedding  officers  in  the  community, the use of technology in the future and falling crime rates, which will result in a

Findings

Comments

The  Panel  believes  that,  while  the current plans will undoubtedly improve the  working  conditions  for  police officers and civilian staff, pressures on the office accommodation may increase in the future. There being no apparent opportunity  to  extend  the  planned building at Green Street there will be a risk  of  overcrowding  in  the  new building. The inevitable solution will be that  the  States  of  Jersey  Police  will require  at  some  point  in  the  future additional premises.

reduced  requirement  for  traditional accommodation in the future.

The Panel also received evidence about the flexibility and expansion capabilities built in to the new building which are designed to support a workplace strategy which  will  continue  to  promote  more flexible working and facilities.

Far  from  suggesting  the  need  for additional accommodation in the future, the above supports the current building design which is flexible and adaptable to meet the changing demands of a modern police force.

In the unlikely event that expansion was required in the next 30 years, the new Police HQ would adjoin Green Street car park, which is owned by the public and is scheduled to be redeveloped sometime over the next 10–15 years. The site does therefore  provide  scope  for  expansion space in the future.

Key  Finding 2 –  The  Panel  notes  that the  10%  expansion  allowance mentioned above provides, not for any additional extension to the building, but for yet more intensive use of the internal office  space.  Members  would  be concerned  that  this  might  mitigate against  the  principle  of  providing  a pleasant  yet  efficient  working environment.

The Panel notes that the 2009 review resulted in a significant reduction in the size  specifications  for  the  building. Whilst it is clear that the new planned accommodation  will  provide  much improved  working  conditions  for  the police,  the  Panel  believes  that  there would be a risk of compromising some of these gains if too much pressure was placed on the working environment by further  reductions  in  spatial arrangements.

Evidence provided to the Panel about the built-in  flexibility  and  capacity,  along with the design parameters used, do not suggest there would be a compromise to working  conditions  in  the  future.  The office  areas  have  been  designed  by professionals  with  vast  experience  of police  buildings  and  reflecting  best practice  guidelines  for  UK  police buildings and British Council of Offices (BCO) recommendations.

The 2009 review was undertaken before the Green Street site was identified; and the  evidence  provided  to  the  Panel identified that this work was necessary to  address  an  over-specification  of  the area  brief  and  to  take  account  of developments in modern policing.

In its report, the Panel recognises that this  work  is  in  accordance  with  BCO guidance,  but  states  that  it  has

Findings

Comments

The suggestion that new technology will lead to a reduction in the numbers of officers requiring office space to write reports  is  also  regarded  with  some scepticism. The Panel is not convinced that the provision of new technology in police  cars  will  significantly  alter  the preference for police officers to return to the Police station to write reports.

Working  in  a  crowded  and  cramped environment, should the need to provide additional  workstations  become apparent  in  the  future  as  operational requirements change and expand, would not be conducive to good morale within the police force nor effective working.

reservations  about  the  Police  having specific  requirements  beyond commercial office buildings. It has been made clear to the Panel that the plans include  both  office  areas  designed  to modern  office  standards,  and  many purpose-designed  specialist  spaces include  a  custody  suite,  forensic laboratory,  control  room,  lockers, armoury, training facilities and incident rooms.

The Panel's scepticism' about the use of technology  in  the  future  is  unfounded and  not  supported  by  evidence.  The evidence  provided  to  the  Panel  was based on current practice within a UK Police Force seeking to keep officers in the  community  as  much  as  possible, whilst  reducing  the  use  of  expensive accommodation.  The  Panel  was  also informed  that  the  Jersey  HQ  had  not been designed assuming the use of this level of technology. Such a development would  further  reduce  pressure  on accommodation in the future, rather than increase it. Finally, it is the needs of the community rather than the preference of Police  officers  that  will  dictate  future developments in policing.

The  Panel  provides  no  evidence  to support  the  view  that  operational changes would result in a crowded and cramped environment' in the future. The evidence  provide  to  the  Panel  has demonstrated  how  the  building  meets standards  and  the  flexibility  and expansion space provided by the design. Impact  of  technological  change  and adoption  of  modern  working  practices should not be underestimated.

As  noted  in  the  Panel's  report,  the proposed scheme meets the internal area requirements set in the 2009 brief and would not be constructed any larger if it were to occupy an alternative site.

Findings

Comments

Key Finding 3 – Parking provision: The Panel believes that there are significant issues with regard to parking provision, both for visitors and for police officers and civilian staff, which have not been fully considered.

We set out a response to the issues of visitor and staff parking below.

Key Finding 4 – The Panel believes that the current planned provision in Snow Hill is inadequate and too distant from the  Police  station.  The  Panel  is particularly concerned that members of the  public  who  arrive  at  the  Police Headquarters in a distressed state (for example  when  they  have  been  the victim  of  a  crime,  reporting  criminal damage  or  injury  or  to  collect  family members  from  detention)  will  find access  arrangements  difficult, particularly  at  times  of  the  day  when nearby car parks are full or late at night and in the dark.

Anecdotal  evidence  suggests  that  a significant number of distressed visitors to the current Police station at Rouge Bouillon regularly park as closely to the Reception  as  they  can  regardless  of inconvenience  of  other  drivers.  This problem is likely to be exacerbated at the  Green  Street  site  and  may  cause traffic  problems  on  Route  du  Fort  or clog  up  the  designated  disabled provision in front of the building.

The Panel believes that current visitor parking provision is inadequate, and the lack of convenient nearby parking in an area with congested parking provision will cause considerable frustration.

We  note  the  Panel's  concerns  about visitor  parking  and  its  reference  to anecdotal' evidence about the need for visitors  to  park  close  to  the  building. Based on the actual number and profile of visitors to Police HQ, it is believed the  visitor  parking  arrangements  to  be appropriate  and  the  same  as arrangements that are widely accepted at many public buildings in St. Helier .

The new building is close to the town centre, closer than the current HQ and just minutes away on foot. Green Street car  park  has  availability  from  early afternoons until the following morning, though it is accepted that this car park is generally  full  from  9:00 a.m.  to  early afternoon,  and  would  have  limited availability  for  visitors  over  this  time. This  is  why  it  is  proposed  to  allocate 3 spaces  in  Snow  Hill  car  park specifically for visitors to the States of Jersey Police. In addition, the La Route du Fort/ Cleveland Road car park, which is some 2 minutes away from the new building,  typically  has  more  than 20 spaces available throughout the day.

Nonetheless,  we  believe  the  Panel's thoughts  on  this  matter  to  be  very helpful, and a further review of visitor parking arrangements will be undertaken as part of the next design stage with the aim  of  improving  the  current arrangements.  However,  this  is  not  a reason  to  delay  the  progress  of  the project.

Findings

Comments

Key Finding 5 – The Panel believes that the  impact  of  the  additional  parking demand  created  by  the  new  police headquarters  may  have  been downplayed. This will create additional pressure on the Green Street Car Park, which  is  the  most  convenient  parking provision for the new building. Police officer parking will displace commuter parking.

The Panel also believes that there are special considerations for police officers which  might  make  it  appropriate  to provide  some  dedicated  parking.  For example,  officers  work  rotating  shifts and may have difficulties finding vacant space close to the building at particular times of the day. The Panel noted that the  Police  Buildings  Design  Guide recognised  that  overlapping  shift patterns should be considered.

In  addition  members  believed  that officers being recalled at short notice to respond to a Major Incident might find difficulties  in  parking  locally.  Also consideration  should  be  given  to officers  who  might  encounter  safety issues in leaving the building at night to get to their cars if these are parked in public spaces.

Detailed evidence has been provided to the  Panel  setting  out  staff  parking requirements  through  a  Transport Assessment,  which  was  based  on  a States of Jersey Police travel survey.

The States of Jersey does not generally provide dedicated staff parking and the removal of a significant amount of staff car  parking  from  the  original specification  of  requirements  in  2009 was appropriate. It is also debatable as to how  acceptable  the  provision  of dedicated staff car-parking in Green St would be to the public.

We do, however, recognise that this is one of the key issues raised by the Police Association  and  some  Civil  Service staff, which has been identified as part of the  Panel's  addendum  to  this  report, which we have responded to separately. We also recognise the need to work with the States of Jersey Police staff in terms of  travel  to  work  and  to  identify solutions  to  address  specific  issues relating to parking for members of staff.

This will be undertaken as part of the next stage of design and will be included as  part  of  the  development  of  a Workplace Travel Plan. However, this is not a reason to delay the progress of the project.

Key  Finding 6 –  Members  would welcome  the  provision  of  additional parking  at  Snow  Hill  to  reduce  the current parking congestion in the area. The Panel notes however that funding and  cost  viability  remains  an  issue, therefore this development is far from certain.

This  work  is  being  undertaken  by  the Minister  for  Transport  and  Technical Services, and the options have recently been published. We understand that this will  be  presented  to  the  States  in  due course.

Recommendations

To

Accept/ Reject

Comments

Target date of action/ completion

1

Recommendation 1 – The Panel recommends that  the  parking provision for visitors is reviewed with a view to providing  greater  and more  convenient parking  provision  for visitors.  The  Panel believes  that  Green Street would be a better option for this purpose.

Minister for T&R

Accept

A  review  of  visitor  parking arrangements will be undertaken as part of the next design stage with  the  aim  of  improving  the proposed arrangements.

Design Stage E (timings to be confirmed)

2

Recommendation 2 – The  Panel  notes  the brief  statement  by  the States  of  Jersey  Police that  the  provision  of staff  parking  was  not considered necessary or appropriate.  Members respectfully  disagree with  this  view  and recommend  that  it would  be  sensible  to acknowledge  the  need for staff parking  in the area  by  designating  a suitable  area  of  Green Street  to  staff  parking with  additional provision for visitors.

Minister for T&R

Reject

Whilst  the  Panel's  specific solution  is  not  accepted  at  this stage, it is accepted that there is a need to work closely with States of Jersey Police staff in terms of travel  to  work,  and  to  identify solutions  to  address  issues relating  to  parking  for  members of staff.

This will be undertaken as part of the next stage of design.

Design Stage E (timings to be confirmed)