Pick Everard reports completion of Thames Valley Police forensic centre in Bicester

Pick Everard has reported the completion of a purpose-built forensic services centre for Thames Valley Police in Bicester, on which it provided cost management, project management and contract administration services.

The consultancy said on 8 October that the facility, a three-storey complex with a dedicated plant building, brings the force's crime scene investigation, fingerprint, digital forensics and laboratory teams together on one site, replacing outdated and dispersed facilities across its estate.

Willmott Dixon was main contractor and AtkinsRéalis designed the building. Pick Everard said its services were provided through the NHS SBS framework, and described the centre as the flagship building in the force's Forensic Improvement Programme.

Matt Rollins, director of cost management at Pick Everard, said: "we worked closely to implement changes, reduce project risks and maintain control over budgets, helping to deliver an impressive facility where specialist teams can now work together in one place."

Procurement

Willmott Dixon said in its own announcement on 5 August 2026 that the building was procured through the Southern Construction Framework (SCF).

James Wright, head of SCF (SE&L), said: "SCF is proud to have supported Thames Valley Police in procuring this important investment through our framework."

Completion and handover

Willmott Dixon's project page records practical completion in July 2026, marked by an event hosted by the force. Its August release said fit-out and commissioning work was continuing before the centre becomes fully operational.

Deputy Chief Constable Ben Snuggs, quoted in Pick Everard's release, said the centre represented an investment in the force's people and future capabilities, and that he looked forward to colleagues moving in over the coming months.

The programme and timeline

The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Thames Valley announced Willmott Dixon as preferred contractor on 10 February 2023. In its own release that month, Willmott Dixon said construction was expected to finish in winter 2024/25, with Atkins as multi-disciplinary design consultant.

Cherwell District Council's planning register shows application 22/02922/F, for a Thames Valley Police Technical Services Building on land south west of Avonbury Business Park, Howes Lane, was received on 23 September 2022 and permitted on 13 October 2023. The PCC said in February 2023 that the council's planning committee had agreed to grant permission subject to a Section 106 agreement.

Construction officially started on 29 August 2023 on force-owned land near Avonbury Business Park, according to the PCC, with the concrete frame due to begin in November that year. A topping-out ceremony on 19 March 2025 marked completion of the superstructure, when the PCC said the building was expected to be completed the following year.

Willmott Dixon said the building uses an in-situ reinforced concrete primary frame with a cold-rolled steel secondary frame, sits within the Bicester eco-town development and was delivered to BIM Level 2. Pick Everard said it is designed to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating and includes a central atrium, floor-to-ceiling glazing, a roof terrace, landscaping and breakout spaces, alongside specialist laboratories, digital forensic facilities and training areas for staff and students.

The PCC described the Forensic Improvement Programme in 2023 as involving significant investment over three years, following a review of the force's forensics services that identified a need to modernise facilities and increase capacity. Beyond the Bicester building, the programme covers improvements to CSI hubs and recruitment of additional forensic staff across the Forensic Investigation Unit, which the PCC said was still recruiting at the time of topping out in March 2025.