Police building tops out at Central Park
A TOPPING out ceremony has taken place at Greater Manchester Police’s new divisional headquarters at Central Park at Newton Heath in north Manchester.
The 50,000 sq ft office building, designed by Aedas and developed by Ask:Goodman, is under construction on the 5.3 acre plot adjacent to the force’s new HQ building.
It is spread over four floors and wraps around the single storey custody block to the south, which contains 30 cells and a high security holding facility.
A glass-roofed internal street runs the full length of the building, creating a break between the office and the custody areas. Large pre-cast concrete elements frame the office elevation and lighter glass panels.
Glass cladding areas emphasise the circulation stairs at either end of the building and mask the more private areas on ground and third floors.
The new divisional headquarters is part of a £56m project to reorganise police buildings in north Manchester with a mix of funding provided by Greater Manchester Police Authority (GMPA) and the Government.
David Burkinshaw, on behalf of developers, Ask:Goodman, said: “The ceremony marks the final completion of the building’s structure and is a significant step forward for the Park and GMP’s programme to replace existing facilities in order to improve services.
More than 1,000 people will occupy the divisional headquarters and the force’s HQ next door.
“We look forward to completing the building in November 2011 when we will have delivered a total of 700,000 sq ft of new business space,” said Burkinshaw.
Chairman of GMPA, Manchester City Councillor Paul Murphy said: “It’s great to see work which has been planned for many years coming to life. This is the latest new police building provided by GMPA as part of a Force Estates Strategy mapped out back in 2006.
“Our new police buildings are all about enabling officers to work more efficiently and effectively so the service people receive is not only a good one but also represents value for money. I have every confidence this building will help achieve that.”
