A SAVAGE round of police station closures across Devon and Cornwall has seen Teignbridge escape lightly with just two bases being shut – in Bovey Tracey and Dawlish.

But senior officers have warned that more casualties may follow the astonishing list of 34 closures they announced last week as part of a desperate struggle to make savings of nearly £30 million.

Bovey Tracey’s town hall office is expected to shut in the new year with officers transferring to Newton Abbot.

Dawlish’s Brunswick Place ‘shop office’ will vanish some time over the next two years with hopes a replacement facility will be opened at the town council’s Manor House offices in the resort.

Residents in each town have expressed grave concern at how deep the police cuts will be – and that the rout may continue as the budget-squeezed two counties force admits that the savings bill is likely to rocket to £54 million.

Officers, insisting they are not leaving the communities they serve, argued: “We are being more efficient and organised around where we base our people to ensure we continue to deliver the best service we can.’

But an even bleaker outlook faces the force with police commissioner Tony Hogg and Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer both conceding that more cuts and job losses were llooming.

Both have said they are more interested in spending what money they have on officers rather than ‘bricks and mortar.’

They say further scrutiny of the force’s estate was unavoidable, adding that this would mean the ‘closures of other sites and a significant reduction in the services that can be delivered.’

Mr Sawyer said: ‘As a force we face challenging budget reductions set by the government and the subsequent need to reduce our workforce over the next four years.

‘It is only right that we review our estates and only keep those buildings that are not in need of significant modernisation and those needed to ensure we can continue to deliver a professional police service.

He added: ‘We are planning for the future by dispensing with buildings which are costly in terms of maintenance while investing in newer and more efficient premises where needed.

We are not removing ourselves from our communities, we are being more efficient and organised around where we base our people to ensure we continue to deliver the best service we can.

‘Police officers and staff solve crime and keep our communities safe, not buildings. The vast majority of frontline officers already spend their time out in communities either responding to incidents or engaging with the public.’