West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service’s Training Centre
West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service’s brand-new training facility and Horsham Fire Station are now fully operational.
Commissioned by West Sussex County Council, the new multi-million-pound facility incorporates an industry-leading training centre and a new fire station for the Horsham district.
The new site just off the A24 at Highwood replaces the previous fire station in Hurst Road, which was built in 1968, and provides a brand new training facility for the service – the first of its kind for West Sussex.
Work began on the site in November 2021, led by Wilmott Dixon Construction. A topping-out ceremony for the highest point of the building was completed in September 2022, and the site was named Platinum House in honour of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Fitting out continued into 2023, with WSFRS’s wholetime and retained firefighters beginning to respond to 999 calls from the new facility from July 2023.
The facilities
Platinum House incorporates a state-of-the-art training facility together with a new fire station to serve Horsham and the surrounding area.
The new training centre will ensure that West Sussex’s firefighters continue to have the skills and knowledge to keep residents safe for years to come.
The site features several training environments that immerse firefighters in real-life operational situations. This includes a state-of-the-art live-fire training facility, a cold-smoke training tower, an immersive incident command suite, and a road traffic collision training area.
The fire station consists of appliance bays, office space, training rooms, staff bedrooms and a community space. The site is staffed by wholetime firefighters 24 hours a day, seven days a week, as well as a retained unit.
Platinum House is accessed via a new road off The Boulevard, which WSFRS staff have named Macfarlane Way in memory of Station Manager John Macfarlane, who passed away in 2013.
Platinum House’s green credentials
Sustainability is at the heart of the new fire station and training centre.
A strong emphasis has been placed on the use of the latest technology and renewable energy sources to minimise the site’s environmental footprint, which supports the county council’s drive to become carbon neutral by 2030.
The site features solar panels and electric vehicle charging points, as well as air source heat pumps which provide heating.
Access to and from the site
When a 999 call comes in, fire engines will be mobilised to an incident using one of two routes to exit the site.
When responding to a 999 call to the north of the site, fire engines exit the fire station along Macfarlane Way and onto The Boulevard. The junction onto The Boulevard is controlled by wig-wags – a signalling device commonly used at level crossings, consisting of two red lights and an amber light in a triangular formation.
When responding to an incident to the south, fire engines exit the site using a dedicated slipway onto the slip road of the A24 southbound junction. This junction is also controlled by wig-wags to manage approaching traffic, ensuring fire engines can exit the site safely and swiftly.
The site is accessed from the A24 at the junction with the A264 for Broadbridge Heath. If driving from the north, exit the A24 at the exit for the A264 Broadbridge Heath. At the roundabout, take the first exit towards Highwood village and then the first right onto Macfarlane Way.
From the south, take the third exit at the roundabout and cross over the A24 to the next roundabout and take the second exit towards Highwood village. Take the first right onto Macfarlane Way and follow the road down to Platinum House.
Travelling to Platinum House sustainably
As part of West Sussex County Council’s commitment to reduce its carbon emissions and become carbon neutral by 2030, it is providing visitors who commute to Platinum House with resources to help achieve this goal.
The future
In September 2022, members of West Sussex County Council’s Cabinet and West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service’s Service Executive Board buried a time capsule on site, containing a number of items and photographs from the service’s history.
The capsule is buried underneath the flagpole and will be opened in September 2072.