Sidmouth Police Station NOT for sale

Pranksters put Sale Agreed sign at Sidmouth Police Station

DO not fear, Sidmouth Police Station has not been sold, neither is it up for sale!

For the second time in three weeks, pranksters have put up sale boards outside the Temple Street station, this time a Sale Agreed sign from Halls Estate Agents, Sidmouth.

When staff arrived at work on Monday, they discovered 20 telephone messages from concerned members of the public, who believed the sale sign was genuine.

Halls’ staff twigged it was the act of late night revellers on Saturday evening, who had removed one of their Sale Agreed boards and put it up at the police station.

They spent more than an hour returning calls to the general public to reassure them that the police station had definitely not been sold and Sidmouth’s local constabulary was still very much in situ.

One of Hall`s clients took this photograph, of the board before it was removed.

David Gwillim FNAEA, a partner with Halls Estate Agents and currently based in their Ottery St Mary Offices said: “Estate Agents’ boards are often moved to properties which are not for sale on Friday and Saturday nights, when late night revellers return home in the early hours.

“A member of our staff quickly replaced our Sale Agreed board to its rightful place, and all concerned members of the public were contacted in order to allay any worries about our police station having been sold.”

A Sidmouth police spokesman stressed the station was NOT for sale.

They said: “Three weeks ago we had a different company’s sign and they took the sign away. People were thinking it had been sold and that it had fallen through and been put on with a different company.

“Personally I think it is hilarious. Every generation thinks they are the first person who has done this.

“Twenty years ago I was taking down signs from the police station. It is just youngsters having their little laugh.

“How much is the station worth? I don’t know, but I know parts of it used to be a house.”