Work has started on a new purpose built headquarters for North Tyneside Area Command.

The £23 million development will provide Northumbria Police with a modern, efficient new building to help meet the policing needs of the 21st Century.

The completed building will include state of the art accommodation for police officers, Community Support Officers and Police Staff, as well as a large custody suite.

Northumbria Police Authority acquired the 6 acre site at Willington Square on Middle Engine Lane and work is now due to begin.

Cllr Mick Henry, chair of the Northumbria Police Authority, started the building works with a ceremonial turf cutting today (25 March).

“This is the start of an ambitious project that will help an already excellent police force deliver even better services to the people within the Northumbria area. Policing is a dynamic activity that changes over time, and the needs of a modern force such as Northumbria are changing all the time. These plans will lead to a new area command building that will move us into the 21st Century.

“We’re proud of the job we all do to make the Northumbria area safe and the NPA will provide investment to ensure that we run one of the most successful police forces in the country.”

Deputy Chief Constable Sue Sim said: "We're very pleased that work has now started on site and we can look forward to seeing the building progress over the coming months.

"There has been a great deal of consultation and planning to get to this stage and this has been a necessary part of making sure that the new police headquarters will enable officers to continue to provide a first class policing service to the people of North Tyneside."

The new facility will be located on Middle Engine Lane in Wallsend.

It is expected that construction and fitting out will be completed by the end of 2010.

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