I went to the meeting last night at the Bridge Centre West Town. The new location as the base for the Safer Neighbourhood Team (Hayling Police) will be the community room at the back of Hayling Library formerly the garage for the mobile library then a storage place for Winchester records as explained by CI Heath. 16 other police stations in Hampshire are being relocated some to County Council partners like the library including schools and fire stations but also in at least one case to a supermarket. There will be no front office and the public are not at liberty to call on the team personally at this location. The Community room at the library refurbished a couple of years back with a grant of about 120000 from central government funds is to be relocated to a redesigned area to the south (left) of the library currently used for reference maps photocopier twinning display newspapers etc (my favourite part of the library). The library manager went to great pains to propose that nothing would be lost from the library facilities (but you cant put a quart into a pint pot!). Parking at the back will also now be an issue. The other main news story was that Sgt Neil Goodyear who has been an excellent and personable leader of Hayling Police for over two years is leaving the Island and the Police Force to join the Royal Fleet Auxiliary starting at the lowest rank. There can be no doubt that he will do well in that role and he will be greatly missed. He will be replaced by Sgt Darren Osgood who will be shared by Hayling and Emsworth which may be quite a challenge! The change of Sergeant and the sharing with Emsworth was not planned as part of the relocation
