LFBWork on a major construction programme which will see nine of the London Fire Brigade's oldest fire stations being rebuilt is set to get underway from September.

The final contract has now been signed with the LFB’s Private Finance Initiative (PFI) partner Blue3 who will deliver the design, build, financing and maintenance of the stations.

The PFI project will see the Brigade receive £51.5 million to replace and  make major improvements to eight stations as well as a create a newly built one in Mitcham.

Facilities fit for modern fire & rescue
London Fire Brigade’s Assistant Commissioner for Technical and Service Support Dominic Ellis said: “This is excellent news for Londoners. Some of our fire stations are over 100 years old and struggle to meet the demands of a  modern fire and rescue service. This rebuilding programme will bring some of our oldest stations up to date and provide us with brand new facilities fit for the  21st century.

“The community spaces that these stations will provide also reinforce our commitment to providing fire safety education and advice to Londoners – something that we believe has played a key role in the fall in fires and deaths and injuries from fire over the last ten years.”

Extra fire cover from neighbouring stations
As well as providing state of the art facilities for fire crews, with room for modern fire appliances and training,  the stations will also be kitted out with community spaces  that will allow members of the public to easily access vital life saving fire safety advice.

The rebuilding programme will be completed in two phases with work starting on site at Mitcham, Old Kent Road , Orpington and Plaistow fire stations in September and October.

The second phase of the programme will see building work beginning at Dagenham, Dockhead, Leytonstone, Purley and Shadwell from September 2014. Construction work at each Station will take around 12 months.

Arrangements will be put in place to ensure that fire cover provided by the stations being rebuilt is not interrupted during building. Neighbouring stations have been refurbished and a temporary station will be provided at Orpington to accommodate extra fire engines and firefighters from the PFI (planned for improvement) stations during construction.