The Metropolitan Police have set out their plans to reduce the front counter hours at Bexleyheath Police Station. 

Leader of the Council, Councillor Baroness O’Neill of Bexley OBE, has written to the Metropolitan Police Commissioner. Sir Mark Rowley QPM, with serious concerns about the planned changes.

Read the letter in full below

Dear Commissioner,

I was shocked to learn that you are considering reducing the overnight opening hours of the front counter of the Bexleyheath Police Station by closing the desk between 11pm and 7am.

This has raised a number of serious issues that need to be looked at in detail before any permanent decision is made.

Bexleyheath is our main town centre. We do all we can to support the businesses there and encourage people to visit during the day and the evening. We have spent time and careful planning, working with police partners and stakeholders, to develop a thriving night time economy. We have a number of pubs and restaurants, as well as two busy and successful night clubs that open until 2.30am, meaning we have activity in the town centre until 3am at the weekend. Bexleyheath is the only borough within the Basic Command Unit (BCU) that has clubs that are open until this time, yet for some reason you have decided to close our desk from 11pm.

Our Police Station is close to the town centre and these clubs. Its presence serves both as a deterrent to criminals and a possible safe haven for those in trouble or for anyone wishing to report a crime and yet you are considering taking this away from us. Bexleyheath Police Station has recently benefited from significant investment in its custody suite, which has been refurbished to a high standard. It seems counterintuitive to reduce public-facing services at a site that has clearly been identified as a long-term operational asset.

While we recognise the financial challenges facing the Metropolitan Police and the broader drive to modernise services, we urge you to reconsider the decision to reduce front counter hours at Bexleyheath Police Station. The proposed changes fail to take into account the unique needs and characteristics of our borough. The absence of public consultation has further compounded local frustration, leaving residents and stakeholders feeling sidelined in decisions that directly impact their safety and access to policing.

Moreover, the current BCU model and recent changes to staffing structures are placing additional pressures on our Safer Neighbourhood Teams, increasingly tying officers to desk-based duties rather than enabling them to be visible and active within our communities. For many residents, the loss of a front counter will not be seen as a minor operational adjustment, but as yet another step in the gradual withdrawal of the Met’s presence from Bexley.

I would also point out that your own Metropolitan Police 2017 Public Access Strategy sets out the commitment to ensure that there is one 24/7 front counter in every borough. Are you really planning to go back on that commitment and leave us without this much needed cover?

I strongly urge you to reconsider this proposal.

Yours sincerely

Cllr Baroness O'Neill of Bexley OBE