New fire station will be real teamwork
PLANS for a new fire station in Crowthorne are all systems go, following a special groundbreaking ceremony last week.
Members of the Royal Berkshire Fire & Rescue Service were joined by councillors and special guests, including your Wokingham Paper editor, for the event. Now the station will be rebuilt in a form that will be fit for the 21st century.
When completed, the station will become the county’s second tri-service station, housing police, fire and ambulance crews, as well as being a community hub with rooms for the general public to use.
Guests heard more about the scheme from the chairman of Royal Berkshire Fire Authority, Cllr Colin Dudley.
He said: “Crowthorne Fire Station is the next on-call station to benefit from Royal Berkshire Fire Authority’s Capital Investment programme which focuses on how we continue to maintain and renew our buildings, fleet and equipment and ICT. These assets are vital to enable us to effectively deliver our prevention, protection and response service to the people of Royal Berkshire.”
There was a virtual tour of the planned facilities on a specially created video and the Police and Crime Commissioner for the Thames Valley, Anthony Stansfeld, spoke.
Wokingham Borough Council’s representative on the fire authority, Cllr Angus Ross, gave a short address explaining some of the thinking behind the new station.
He said: “Once work is complete, Crowthorne Fire Station will become Royal Berkshire’s second tri-service station, with all three blue light services operating from one site. In addition to providing a residence for Thames Valley Police and South Central Ambulance Service, the work will provide a fire engine bay that is slightly larger in order to accommodate an extra vehicle, such as a 4x4, which can provide an additional emergency response to incidents.
“A key priority in the planning of the re-build has been to include facilities for community use. A community room has been designed within the new station, which will be available for use by members of the public or local community groups. In addition, the new station will also provide a compact gym for firefighters to maintain their fitness standard.”
While the work takes place, the fire crews will be based at nearby Wellington College. It is expected that the crews will be able to move in during summer next year.
Speaking to The Wokingham Paper, Cllr Ross said: “This project is something we’re now rolling out across the county. We started in Hungerford and that has worked well. All the signs are that this is going to be working well too. We have had enormous co-operation from the crew here and people in the village, including Wellington College.
“This existing building is not fit for purpose. It was built in the 1960s and the requirements of modern firefighters are very different.
“The community room is separate to the operational area, and local people can book and use that facility. It’s a great bonus and a good community resource.”