■ Opening nears for new £1.4m police station

The opening of a police station in Cambourne which was designed to relax visitors is just weeks away.

Officers say the new base, which cost £1.4 million, will “dramatically enhance” their ability to respond to 999 calls from nearby villages.

They have also trumpeted special features to calm people who walk through the building’s doors, and its green credentials.

The two-storey, 500-square-metre building uses plenty of natural light and has areas where visitors can have conversations discreetly, without going into an enclosed space.

It will utilise air source heating, solar panels to warm water, and has a central atrium which will allow air to circulate, so air conditioning is not needed.

Ruth Rogers, chairman of Cambridgeshire Police Authority, said the building would be an asset to the force.

She told the News: “The new police station is the most environmentally-friendly building in our property portfolio.

“Cambourne is a large settlement which will benefit from the permanent visible presence of the police station.”

Neighbourhood officers covering the Comberton, Gamlingay and Melbourn beats will be based at the station a few weeks from now, while there will also be reactive officers on hand to answer emergency calls, and community safety workers.

The exact opening date and its opening hours are yet to be confirmed.

Cllr Clayton Hudson, chairman of Cambourne Parish Council, welcomed the addition to the village’s facilities.

He said: “It’s good to have a local building – we might get faster response times and there will be more of a uniformed presence.
“But in all honesty Cambourne doesn’t have a crime problem.”

The police office is next to Cambourne’s fire station, which hit the headlines when it emerged there would not be a fire engine based on site.

The fire service is in the final stages of appointing a constructor and building work is expected to start later this summer, with completion scheduled for spring next year.

The development of the police station has not been without controversy.

Plans for a wind turbine were scrapped after protests from residents, while the opening is well behind the original schedule.