Wednesday, April 14, 2004

The largest PFI police station in the South East will be opened this Friday, 16 April, by Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir John Stevens, and Toby Harris, Chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority.

The Lewisham station is the final one of four to be completed as part of a landmark £120 million PFI contract between Equion plc, a division of John Laing plc, and the Metropolitan Police Authority, which is responsible for the police estate in London.

The state-of-the-art new building, developed and funded by Equion, brings to Lewisham innovative, modern facilities and technology that will enhance the local policing strategy. The station, one of the largest police facilities in Europe, will house branches of the Specialist Crime Directorate, Forensic Science unit and Mounted Police.

Equion will also provide an extensive range of essential support and facilities management services during the 25 year contract period, such as front desk management, custody assistants and evidence and equipment storage.

Richard Weston, Managing Director at Equion plc said:
"The Lewisham opening is a celebration of the successful completion, on time and budget, of all four stations in the South-East London police stations project. We have worked closely with our partners at the Metropolitan Police throughout the project to ensure that the new stations will provide the facilities and support services that allow the police to carry out their jobs to the very highest standards."

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir John Stevens said:
"I am committed to the development of a police service fit for London's future. This means providing improved facilities that will support and enhance policing in the community and benefit the officers and staff that work in them. These new stations have been designed to do just that and also show that the Metropolitan Police Service is in the business of opening police stations and keeping them open."

Equion plc is the UK's leading provider of police facilities and is currently involved in 30 police projects. In another ceremony this week, representatives of Greater Manchester police marked the official opening of the new Urmston deployment station by unveiling a commemorative plaque. The station is one of 17 facilities funded and managed by Equion in the Greater Manchester area.

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Notes to Editors

Contact Christine Jones, Tel: 020 7901 3200 for interviews with Equion, further information or photographs of all four South-East London police stations managed by Equion (Lewisham, Bromley, Sutton and Deptford).

Lewisham borough police station is part of a £120 million PFI contract with debt financing provided by Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and equity by Equion. The project is a 25-year concession with civilian services provided by Equion Facilities Management. Design and construction of the police station is by Laing O'Rourke.

Equion is also responsible for 17 police stations and facilities in Greater Manchester, the Metropolitan Police Service Specialist Training Centre in Gravesend, a police training centre for Durham and Cleveland police force and seven British Transport police stations.

Equion is a specialist provider of facilities in the PFI and PPP markets with a long-term perspective and approach. Equion offers a combination of skills and experience, from planning and funding through to design, construction and operation. It is actively involved in the management of a wide range of police, education, health, defence and special purpose government facilities including:

-       the new Norfolk & Norwich, and Queen Elizabeth (Greenwich) Hospitals
-       a radical restructuring of primary health care facilities in Manchester, Salford and Trafford
-       the Ministry of Defence Main Building refurbishment in Whitehall
-       the Joint Services Command and Staff College at Shrivenham
-       Highlands Secondary School in Enfield
-       South East Essex College at Southend

Equion and its parent company John Laing plc won the Infrastructure Journal Developer of the Year Award in February 2004. http://www.equion.plc.uk/

John Laing plc is one of the UK's leading corporate developers and investors in public infrastructure through the Private Finance Initiative, with a proven record of delivering new investments on time and to budget. It holds a large and expanding portfolio of investments under three main divisions: Equion, Laing Roads and Laing Rail. The Group invests in 37 projects spanning transport, health, education and special purpose government facilities, of which 22 are fully operational. It is currently preferred bidder on 14 PFI and PPP projects and short-listed for a further 12.

Overall responsibility for the Met police estate is vested in the Metropolitan Police Authority, the statutory organisation responsible for ensuring an efficient and effective police service for London. Day-to-day management of the police estate is delegated by the MPA to the Met's Property Services Department.