Cleveland Fire Brigade has officially opened its doors to their new Community Fire Station in Middlesbrough. The new four-bay station will house three front line appliances and a turn-table ladder.
At a cost of £4.4m, the new station also has a mini community fire station for members of the public and where young people can take part in a number of fire safety activities. The station also boasts training rooms, meeting rooms, a community hub and a fully kited out gymnasium. The station also has sleeping quarters for fire crew personnel.
The development was partly-funded by a government grant and brings the new fire station which is situated on Park Road South up to 21st century standards. The government grant allocation will also see new community fire stations being built for Thornby and Grangetown with a new training centre for Hartlepool.
The new community fire station which will not only provide an emergency response service, but also provide members of the public the opportunity to utilise the facility and access community services.
The Middlesbrough station was opened on Wednesday 9th September by Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenant Barry Dodd CBE, Chair of Cleveland Fire Authority, Councillor Jan Brunton and Cleveland ‘s Chief Fire Officer Ian Hayton. Cllr Brunton, said: “We need to invest in new facilities so the brigade can continue to provide an excellent emergency service and create fit-for-purpose buildings for the future.” This is a fantastic new facility which I hope will be used by the community for years to come.”
Chief Fire Officer Ian Hayton, added: “Middlesbrough Fire Station is at the heart of the community. It is not only important in terms of its emergency response to incidents for the area, but it is a community hub where staff work together with partners to provide support services to local people.”
Old Fire Station:
The previous station, which sat on the same site, was built in 1939 and was demolished in April 2014 to make way for the new base. Crews were operating out of a temporary base in the Parliament Road area during the building process. The original building had previously been considered for listing by English Heritage but it was ruled that it did not meet the required standards.
Cleveland Fire Brigade also considered retaining it but it was decided the cost of improvements needed to bring it up to date would be too great. The decision to completely replace the original fire station was controversial. The fire brigade had considered retaining it but decided the cost of improvements to bring it up to date would be too great.
