Surrey Police has announced plans to relocate from Reigate Police Station following the discovery of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) – an issue that it said had only just come to its attention.
A statement from the force said: “When national news about the use of RAAC in school construction hit the headlines last month [September], Surrey Police began proactively assessing buildings for the presence of RAAC.”
It added that structural engineers found that the majority of the station did not present an immediate risk to users, but one section in the external area of the rear-wing on the south side of the building was showing signs of distress.
Prop supports are being installed and some teams continued to be based there, but most have been moved out.
The public will no longer be able to visit the station – with front-counter services relocating to Caterham Police Station later this month – and the building can no longer be used to monitor CCTV cameras for Mole Valley District Council.
Surrey Police said it was examining future options for what it can do with the building.
Surrey police and crime commissioner Lisa Townsend said: “The safety of the public and our officers, staff and volunteers must be the most important consideration and I fully support the prompt action being taken by the force to vacate the majority of the building.
“This, of course, is a temporary measure, and my office will work closely with the chief constable and his team to ensure that we can find a long-term solution for the future of our Eastern Divisional HQ as quickly as possible.”
RAAC first emerged as an issue after the sudden collapse of a school roof in Kent in 2018. A report by watchdog the Standing Committee on Structural Safety the following year warned that the material was inherently “much weaker” than traditional concrete and had a “useful life” of around three decades.
In September 2022 the Office of Government Property sent a notice to all property leaders warning that all RAAC was “life-expired and liable to collapse”.
Last month, it was announced that Devon and Cornwall police and crime commissioner Alison Hernandez had ordered the demolition of three of its buildings that had been constructed using RAAC.
Hernandez commissioned surveys of all of the 130 properties she manages in 2019 after warnings about the material started being sounded.
Barnstaple Police Station in North Devon was put out of use in 2020 and a temporary replacement opened at a former car showroom. The building is due to be demolished.
A sports hall and swimming pool at the force’s headquarters in Exeter have already been knocked down.
Earlier this year, Police Scotland moved staff out of three of its buildings after discovering they contained RAAC, following a review of 65 properties.
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