Cumbria Constabulary’s Police Dogs have a newly refurbished home at Police HQ, following investment into the old Dog Section building to improve upon the welfare facilities for the dogs. These improvements are part of the wider work taking place across the estate to ensure buildings are fit for purpose, allowing Police Officers and staff to better serve the public.
The old kennels, originally built in the 1960s, were refurbished to make them larger, with two new isolated kennels added and a new dog wash extension was built including a professional dog bathtub. The interior rooms were redecorated, including lighting improvements, and new appliances were added. Externally the roof has been repaired, double glazed windows fitted Outside, a new secure fence has been added around the whole site and grass and astroturf have been added to provide a year round exercise area. All refurbishment works followed the guidelines of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) Police Dog Standards and the Dogs Trust Kennel Design.
Cumbria’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, David Allen, holds responsibility for all Policing and Fire and Rescue estates.
Speaking on the improvements, he said: “Investing in our services is vital to ensuring our Police Officers and Staff can continue to provide the best service possible to the residents and visitors of Cumbria.
“Over the last couple of years, we’ve invested in local Police Stations such as Hunter Lane and Appleby as well as several on-call Fire Stations across the county and now we’ve upgraded the Police Dog Section at HQ.
“Our Police Dogs are vital to the organisation and deserve to be comfortable when they are at Headquarters– by taking care of their welfare, they can better do their role in keeping us safe. Their handlers are incredibly dedicated and wanted as much of the upgrades to go towards the dogs as possible, but we had to ensure they also had the facilities to run the section as efficiently as possible.
“Budgets are getting tighter across all public sectors nationally, but we have a duty to keep the public safe. These investments are part of the long-term plans to keep Cumbria Police one of the best Forces in the country and guarantee longevity in what we built and/or refurbish.
“I will continue to update the public on the positive work being completed around our estates.”
Dog Section Sergeant, Aidan Bew, said: “Our police dogs are an essential part of our policing family, and they deserve facilities that match the role they play. The newly refurbished kennels provide a much-improved space that supports their health, wellbeing and performance.
“Our dogs work in challenging and often demanding situations, so having the right facilities in place is vital to their care. This refurbishment is a clear reflection of how valued our police dogs are and of our ongoing commitment to maintaining the highest standards of welfare within the dog section.”
If you wish to report to police you can do so online at Report a crime | Cumbria Police. You can also phone on 101. Always phone 999 in an emergency or if a crime is in progress. Alternatively, you could be entitled to up to £1,000 for giving information anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111.