Staffordshire Police old HQ sale 'interests' PCC Ellis

Staffordshire's police and crime commissioner has said he is taking a "personal interest" in the sale of the force's former Stafford headquarters.

Two deals to sell the 16-acre (six-hectare) site in Cannock Road in Baswich have previously fallen through.

The force relocated to its current £16m headquarters in Weston Road in 2010 having been in Baswich since the 1950s.

Matthew Ellis hopes to have sold the property within six months to recover money for "frontline services".

Mr Ellis has already rescinded the scheme forcing officers to retire after 30 years' service and begun a recruitment drive.

The Conservative commissioner said: "The financing costs and the security costs there are large.

"It is well over a million pounds that I want to see back into policing services and crime reduction services, not just sitting there tied up in property that hasn't been sold.

"I'm now taking a personal interest in making sure that we sort that building out.

Mr Ellis said he was in favour of conducting "a thorough review of all of the property that Staffordshire Police and associated bodies have".