Flagship police HQ formally open

The state-of-the-art police station has been formally opened

A flagship police station built in Medway has been officially opened by the High Sheriff of Kent.

Staff began to move in last year following the closure of stations in Chatham, Rochester and Rainham but it did not officially open until Tuesday.

The station, in Gillingham, boasts the biggest cell block in Kent.

The HQ, on a former dockyard site, was at the centre of a row between the police and developers over 7ft of land during the two-year building project.

High Sheriff of Kent Amanda Cottrell declared the building, in Purser Way, open alongside Chief Constable Michael Fuller and chairwoman of the Kent Police Authority Ann Barnes.

Medway Ch Supt Jan Stephens said the building offered the area "an effective and accessible policing service".

The station's state-of-the-art facilities include a special unit for vulnerable victims, and the only suite in the county where witnesses can spot criminals using a photo data bank.