The cash will be spent on modernising the buildings and on installing new technology, Home Office minister John Denham said on Monday.

It will be spread between 41 forces which applied for grants from the Premises Improvement Fund.

It will modernise the working conditions of our officers, allowing them to operate more effectively John Denham

Some forces will upgrade existing premises, others will set up dedicated video suites for vulnerable witnesses and others will use the cash for joint offices with the Crown Prosecution Service.

Mr Denham said: "The Premises Improvement Fund will modernise the working conditions of our officers, allowing them to operate more effectively.

"The government is serious about tackling crime and we do not believe it is reasonable to expect officers and support staff to provide the highest standards of service in police stations which are physically run-down and ill-equipped."

Fewer stations

There are just over 2,000 police stations in England and Wales.

The Premises Improvement Fund was announced in January and since then there were 57 successful bids under the fund.

Twenty-four of them were awarded the maximum amount of �500,000.

The number of local stations has been steadily decreasingly.

In June, figures revealed that almost one in four police stations in England and Wales had closed in the space of 10 years.

In 1990 there were 2,729 police station compared with 2,099 in 2000.

A survey by the Audit Commission in 1999, called Action Stations, revealed that demand for "front-counter" policing had fallen because communications had improved.