FIRE stations in Worcester, Malvern and Droitwich could be closed and moved out of town centres under plans to improve services and response times.

The moves would be part-funded from the sale of current sites, all of which are in prime locations.

It has been proposed that Worcester's current ageing fire station, off Deansway in the city centre, be replaced with TWO modern stations that will serve the east and west of the River Severn.

The idea is to have one in the St John's area, and one near the motorway to get to outlying areas such as Warndon Villages and Blackpole. In Malvern, the intention is to move the station, which is now sited on Worcester Road in Malvern Link, closer to the hills.

And in an opposite move, the fire station in Droitwich will be taken away from the town centre and relocated nearer to the motorway.

The proposed changes were announced by the Herefordshire and Worcestershire Fire and Rescue Authority in its three-year plan for 2006-09.

But as Alec Mackie, a spokesman for the authority pointed out, these particular objectives may not be implemented until after that.

He said: "These are long-term plans that may not be put in place for 10 years or more and they are in the very early stages.

"One of the main changes will be the way the fire service is operated in Worcester.

"It doesn't make sense to have a station in the city centre, where there is a lot of traffic congestion and where it is sometimes difficult to reach scenes.

"Worcester has developed a lot since the present station

was built 60 years ago and we need to be closer to the motorway and places like Warndon and St Peter's. Two fire stations would make more sense.

"There are similar thoughts behind the moves in Malvern and Droitwich."

There were rumours that the new site in west Worcester would also serve Malvern, but the authority denied this.

Mr Mackie added: "There were concerns we would close the site in Malvern altogether but that is just not correct.

"These moves would improve our services and response times, not to make them bad."

The plans will be discussed and reviewed again in February.

Worcester Fire Station, Copenhagen Street

Specifically built to be a fire station after the Second World War, the site houses three fire engines, a turntable ladder that can reach 100ft, two rescue boats and a Land Rover.

The station is covered 24 hours a day by four different watches consisting of 14 firefighters each.

It also houses fire control, which has 20 members of staff, and until the last couple of weeks was also home to administration staff, who have now moved to a new building in Charles Hastings Way.

l Proposal: To replace it with two stations, one either side of the Severn. A spokesman said: "It is not ideally situated. Congestion means it is sometimes difficult to get to Warndon and St Peter's quickly."

malvern Fire Station,

worcester road

Built in 1984 to replace a Victorian building in Howsell Road, it has two pumping engines, three special units - a control unit and an off-road vehicle that can go through water.

There are 27 staff, including administration workers.

l Proposal: To move the station closer to the Hills. A spokesman said: "The firecrews do a lot to help rescue people who have found themselves in difficulties on the hills."

droitwich Fire Station, saltway

Droitwich is a day-crewed station with 16 firefighters split into two watches of eight. Also on call is a crew of retained firefighters.

The station has three vehicles, two water ladders and an incident support unit used at all chemical and petroleum incidents.

The station also has the incident response unit, which will act as a mass decontamination facility in the event of a terrorist act.

l Proposal: To move the station closer to the motorway. A spokesman for the service said: "It is quite far away from the motorway at the moment and would be better suited in between this and the town centre."