Essex Police to close Pitsea and Billericay stations with Brentwood, Canvey and Rayleigh shutting to the public

At a press conference held at 1pm, the force has outlined plans for swingeing cuts to stations, PCSOs and police staff. 

In a statement, Essex Police said: "The financial challenges are clear and stark. Essex Police is anticipating cuts of around £63 million by 2019-20, on an annual budget of around £262 million. Around 83 per cent of the budget is spent on the salaries of police officers, PCSOs and police staff.

"With £1 million paying for 20 police constables for a year, these financial challenges inevitably mean that Essex Police’s workforce will become significantly smaller over the next few years."

There are currently 25 police stations with front counters in Essex. The plan is to reduce this number to 10 front counters by April 2016. 

Essex Police proposes to keep front counters open to the public from 9am to 5pm in south Essex:

Grays, Basildon and Southend

Stations not open to the public, but used as bases by police, will be kept in:

Brentwood, Canvey and Rayleigh

Pitsea and Billericay stations will close completely. 

In Southend, several police stations which are already closed to the public will be sold off. 

Leigh, Shoebury, Westcliff and Eastwood, which are already closed to the public, will be sold subject to consultation.

Southend police station, in Victoria Avenue, will remain.

• Follow our live blog of the press conference here​

Stephen Kavanagh Chief Constable, Essex Police, said: "Money is a really big part of the changes we have to make, but it’s not the only factor. Many of the changes we announce today would need to be made even if money wasn’t a problem.

We need to get smarter, we need to get more efficient, and we need to put our limited resources where they can help people in need, not in to outdated buildings or outmoded styles of policing."