Brampton police station counter to close as part of Cumbria Constabulary shake-up

The front counter at Brampton police station is to close as part of a constabulary shake-up with a further two front counters in the region to remain shut.

The changes at Brampton police station are part of what the force say are "changes in demands from the public."

The front counters at Cockermouth and Windermere will also remain closed, they have been shut since 2020.

As part of the force shake-up Hunter Lane Police Station in Penrith will have a front counter open to the public moving forward. This had previously not been the case and the force say that they are able to do this because a significant investment has been made in Hunter Lane as a main deployment base.

The deployment base will have response, neighbourhood, CID and intelligence officers working from there.

In relation to the Brampton front counter closure the force say a new neighbourhood policing model designed which means that there is a dedicated Community Beat Officer for Brampton, a dedicated Community Beat Officer for Longtown and two dedicated PCSOs that have a much smaller area to cover than they have previously had.

Detective Superintendent Dan St Quintin, Cumbria Constabulary, said: "The Constabulary is adapting to meet the changing behaviour of the public.

"In 2014, the Constabulary saw its front counters utilised more than 100,000 times. Last year this number had fallen to around 13,000 - and a high proportion of those visiting front counters did so for a non-policing purpose.

"People are now less and less likely to seek to come to a police station to report a matter. This change in behaviour was accelerated by Covid-19, a period which also saw many people become more accustomed to communicating online.

"However, the Constabulary is keen for those who still wish to speak to the police in person to have the option to do so. With the public not coming to us, we will go to the public.

"The Constabulary is committing to implementing more face-to-face opportunities. Your Neighbourhood Policing Teams will be advertising opportunities to meet officers in person at police stations and out in the community, to discuss any concerns or issues you wish to raise.

"These meetings will be advertised on the Cumbria Police website, within our community newsletters and on our local social media accounts.”

The front counters at Carlisle, Kendal, Barrow, Workington and Whitehaven have seen changes to their opening hours.

The changes are expected to save Cumbria Police up to £300,000.

The force also state that they have recruited an extra 169 police officers as part of a national uplift target.

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