The town centre base, in Wolverhampton Road, is having its front office upgraded and work will start on Monday. It will take around eight weeks to complete but the office will stay open to the public during the work.

The inquiry desk will move to a portable office at the back of the station which will be clearly signposted.

It will be staffed as normal between 8am and 8pm.

An extra interview room will be added to the front of the building, and the reception area’s seating and lighting will be improved.

The station’s wheelchair access and hearing loop will also be enhanced.

A small amount of asbestos will be removed from the station’s roof cavity during the work, which also includes improvements to the charging area of the custody block.

Inspector Mat Derrick, Cannock’s neighbourhood policing unit commander, said: “These improvements to the station will enhance our service to the people of Cannock and the surrounding area.

“Officers will continue to operate 24 hours a day from the station as normal.”

Two years ago, rumours were rife in the town that the police station could be about to close when a Conservative Party newsletter circulated to thousands of homes suggested that it could be moving to Cheslyn Hay or Heath Hayes.

But Staffordshire Police claimed to know nothing about the deal, and it is has never come to fruition.

This year the Express & Star revealed plans to reopen Hednesford police station after a rise in incidents of violence and anti-social behaviour in the town.

Police said they were reacting following a number of unprovoked attacks, robberies and incidents of yobbish behaviour.

By Michelle Pearson

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