IN Brief:
- Surrey Fire and Rescue Service has reopened a 950m² station on Croydon Road following redevelopment.
- Design features separate operational and clean areas, while the all-electric building has heat pumps and photovoltaic panels.
- Neilcott Construction completed the project, with Pick Everard providing design and technical advisory services.
A new 950m² fire station in Reigate is now in use after a redevelopment designed around the operational requirements of Surrey Fire and Rescue Service. The purpose-built facility on Croydon Road replaces the former station and brings together emergency vehicle accommodation, decontamination facilities, staff welfare space, and an all-electric building energy strategy. The station’s public reopening was announced in October, with a community event held on 30 October.
Pick Everard provided design services up to RIBA Stage 3 under Surrey County Council’s Professional Services Framework, then acted as technical adviser from Stage 4. The consultancy worked with the council’s Land and Property team and main contractor Neilcott Construction. Its involvement covered the transition from scheme design to technical oversight during delivery of a facility requiring both emergency response functions and everyday staff accommodation.
The building separates operational activities from cleaning and living accommodation, shaping how firefighters move through the station after an incident. Dedicated breathing apparatus servicing space and externally accessed crew showers reduce the need for personnel and potentially contaminated equipment to pass through clean welfare areas. The arrangement supports the service’s stated ‘shower within the hour’ procedure. Keeping the route to those showers separate from day-to-day welfare spaces is intended to manage potential exposure to contaminants brought back from incidents.
The new appliance bay accommodates regular and specialist vehicles, providing space for different emergency response functions. Circulation around the bay must support rapid crew departure and the return of personnel and equipment after incidents. Dedicated showers and breathing apparatus servicing areas form part of that return route, while the nearby welfare accommodation remains separated from cleaning activity during 24-hour operation.
Chris Gilbert, associate director of architecture at Pick Everard, said: “Reigate Fire Station has been designed to put operational performance, firefighter wellbeing and long-term sustainability at the heart of the building. From the careful separation of clean and operational areas to the all-electric energy strategy, every element supports a safer, more efficient working environment.”
The station includes a gym, wellbeing garden, kitchen and lounge, together with private rest rooms and washing facilities. Its gender-neutral design provides personal privacy for firefighters across different shifts and makes flexible use of the available rooms. Those welfare spaces sit alongside the operational facilities rather than being confined to a separate administrative building, allowing the site to accommodate its continuous staffing and emergency-response functions.
Neilcott Construction’s completion information identifies an all-electric energy solution, air-to-water heat pumps, and 92 photovoltaic panels. The heat pumps supply heating using electricity, while the photovoltaic panels contribute onsite generation. These measures sit alongside a high-performance building fabric and energy management systems. The project team describes the station as carbon neutral and presents the combination of fabric, plant, and solar generation as central to that approach.
A high-performance building envelope helps limit unwanted heat transfer, reducing demand on heating plant during winter operation. The different spaces create varied servicing requirements: vehicle bays open to the outside, breathing apparatus facilities support equipment handling, and the living areas must remain suitable for rest between call-outs. Bringing those functions together in a 950m² building makes circulation, ventilation, heating, and equipment access part of the same design exercise.
The completed site also contains an ambulance touchdown base for South East Coast Ambulance Service, extending the emergency-service functions accommodated at Croydon Road. Neilcott says mature oak trees were protected during construction, creating additional site constraints alongside vehicle circulation and the positioning of the new building. The ambulance provision is intended to support closer working between the two emergency services at the same location.
Dan Quin, chief fire officer at Surrey Fire and Rescue Service, said: “The new Reigate Fire Station is a fantastic base for our crews and an important investment in the safety of Surrey people.” He described the completed facility as an important milestone in maintaining emergency response for local communities.
Surrey Fire and Rescue Service’s Fire and Rescue Authority and Surrey County Council funded the rebuild. Ciarán O’Leary, regional director at Neilcott Construction, said the company was looking towards the next phase at Wray Park, where fire training facilities are to be upgraded. The council awarded Neilcott a separate £6.96m contract, excluding VAT, for Wray Park’s training facility and fire house works in August 2026. That next package includes a fire training tower and modular accommodation for teaching and other uses.
