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Victorian police cells are not fit for their purpose
• PLANS for a new custody block serving the whole borough deserve the support of both those who want to retain and those who want to replace Camden’s police stations.
The standard of Camden’s police cells fall way below what we should expect in a civilised country and the Victorian cells in Kentish Town nick verge on the disgusting.
Camden’s custody suites are difficult to clean, and degrading for both police and the needs of the 12,000 or so people detained in them each year.
They do not offer the space or facilities needed for the lawyers, interpreters, medical personnel and social and drug workers needed in custody suites, nor adequate conditions for the drug testing and DNA sampling required by law.
Washing and showering is difficult (and not private) and the toilets in Kentish Town cells are not up to the task.
If our current cells are retained, the police will have to throw good money after bad just to keep up with government health and safety, computer and CCTV surveillance requirements; to say nothing of dealing with the damp and crumbling structure in the Kentish Town station.
A new cell block could offer decent facilities for detainees, police, and others who work and visit.
Equally important, one centralised facility would be large enough to accommodate 24/7 nurse support to help deal with the many very sick people detained in police cells, thus reducing the scope for deaths in custody.
There is no reason why custody facilities have to be housed in the same building as police patrols/response units and safer neighbourhoods teams.
So however you respond to the consultation on the future of Hampstead and Kentish Town stations, please unite behind the proposal for a new custody block in Camden.
Mick Farrant
Former Chair Camden Independent Custody visitors
Oak Village, NW5
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