CHIEF Constable Dr Timothy Brain led project partners in a ceremony yesterday to mark the start of construction of the new county police HQ at Waterwells Business Park in Quedgeley.

He was joined by Tom Riall, managing director of Reliance Secure Task Management, Greg Pearce, director of Halifax Bank of Scotland, and Brig Michael Browne, chairman of Gloucestershire Police Authority, to break the ground and sign a special start document.

The new headquarters, due to be completed at the end of 2005, will provide accommodation for 400 staff. The building will be modern, predominantly open-plan, providing maximum benefits in terms of space efficiency and flexibility, yet recognising security parameters that result from the nature of the work undertaken.

Funding is through a private finance initiative contract, whereby the commercial partners, Reliance Secure Task Management and Halifax Bank of Scotland, known collectively as Gloucestershire FM Services Ltd, undertake to design, build, finance and operate the building.

A spokesman explained advantage of such an arrangement for the constabulary is that the providers will assume commercial risk for the new building and leave the force free to focus on its core business of policing.

The present HQ has been located at Holland House, Lansdown Road, Cheltenham, since 1965, but the force has evolved and its old accommodation is now stretched to capacity and a burden to maintain. Headquarters departments are housed in several out-of-date buildings spread over four different locations.

Dr Brain said: "We are delighted to see our new headquarters becoming a reality. This is a landmark event in the history of the constabulary and is a key milestone in providing the people of Gloucestershire with the most operationally effective police force in the country. "