Aberdeen Queen Street Police headquarters building to close

The Aberdeen building which has served as police headquarters for 45 years is to close.

Queen Street police office in the city centre was built in the early 1970s for the formation of Grampian Police in 1975.

It is now set to close next year after the disposal was agreed by the Scottish Police Authority board.

Staff will move into other buildings, including Aberdeen City Council's nearby Marischal College headquarters.

Assistant Chief Constable John Hawkins said: "When the Queen Street office opened 45 years ago, it was very much state-of-the-art and has served both Grampian Police and Police Scotland extremely well over the decades.

"However, a building of this age does have its limitations and high costs in keeping it maintained."

Ch Supt George MacDonald, divisional commander for the north east division, added: "Queen Street has been an iconic building in the city centre and thousands of officers and staff, including myself, have enjoyed our time working there, however this approval signals the start of an exciting change."