St Annes' former police station could be turned into children's day nursery

Plans have been submitted to Fylde Council for the former St Annes station on St Andrews Road North to change the use of the building into a nursery.

The building has been vacant since officers moved to the new West Division headquarters at Clifton Road, Blackpool in 2019.

The documents accompanying the planning application show the whole building would be utilised for the nursery, even using one of the former cells as pram storage.

If planning officers at the council accept the proposals, a roof garden would also be created for two to three year olds.

Former offices and interview rooms would be turned into classrooms and play rooms and it is expected the transformation would create 20 full-time jobs at the nursery.

In the planning statement, the proposal to turn the station into a nursery is described as a 'golden opportunity' and could have children from the age of three months up to five-years-old attending.

It also states: "The site has the capacity to hold 90 spaces for nursery age children based on the available floor space and square meter per child as detailed in the statutory requirements for early years."

It adds: "The site is ideally located for the proposed use, given its surroundings and the provision and prevalence of services located within walking distance, which the nursery will help to support.

"The locational sustainability of the site is considered to weigh heavily in favour of the proposal, in accordance with local policies. Moreover, bringing the building back into an active role will generate employment opportunities both directly and indirectly and within the construction industry and supply chain."

The building went on the market in October last year, with an auction guide price of £320,000, and it has since been sold. In the application form for the plans, it states the applicant as Brad McCormack of Motorlands Motorhomes Ltd on Boundary Road, Lytham.

The closure of the front counter at St Annes Police Station on March 29, 2018 signalled the end of public access to police stations in Fylde, with Kirkham having closed the previous January and Lytham in 2012.

Lancashire Police said technology was a key reason for a major drop in footfall which had led to the closures in a bid to make savings. At the time, staffing front counters cost the force £2.8m a year.