THIS is the first picture of Blackburn’s new fire station – complete with its own eco-friendly roof garden.

The new station, which has been given planning permission, will be built on vacant land opposite the current Byrom Street building under a multi-million pound Public Finance Initiative contract.

Artists’ impressions of the building show a ‘living roof’ covered in low-growing plants which the architects said would improve insulation.

A report by the contractor, Balfour Beatty, said the current station, which was built in 1915, was ‘poorly planned and unsuitable for use as a community fire station’.

The report added that it was coming to the end of its useful life, had poor conditions for staff and did not meet hygiene conditions.

Blackburn with Darwen Council wants it to be preserved under its masterplan for the Freckleton Street area, and it is expected to become a ‘business and enterprise facility’. Meanwhile the new centre, which will house two fire engines and an incident support unit, would also have a meeting room and be used to promote fire safety.

It will include a stained-glass window and hanging sign from the old station.

Lancashire Fire Service has joined forces with Merseyside and Cumbria to sign a £47million PFI contract to build 17 new fire stations, including ones in Burnley and Chorley.