Lancashire Police is taking delivery of more than 120 new Škoda cars to further expand its response fleet.

The new arrivals will take on a variety of roles, from day-to-day policing duties to roads policing and driver training,

The new recruits will take on a variety of roles, from day-to-day policing duties to roads policing and driver training, to help serve the 1.5 million residents in the police force’s patch.

More than 90 Scala hatches will be used as standard response ‘beat’ cars, fitted with full police livery and integrated emergency warning systems and driven by primary responders patrolling neighbourhoods on a daily basis.

They’re joined by the Superb hatch 2.0 TSI 280 DSG SportLine model for the Roads Policing Unit. In total, 21 hatch models have been fitted with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), CCTV, lighting and warning equipment, a message board in the rear window and a kit carrier in the boot.

The force has broadened its training car fleet with four Kamiqs equipped with the 1.0 TSI DSG engine and joining the existing Octavias that have been used for training since 2015. The cars – two plain and two liveried – will be used on three-week standard response training courses and were chosen for their all-round competence following a trial period.

The order is rounded out by five Karoq 1.5 TSI DSG 4x4s that will be used in more rural areas.

Škoda’s reputation for its fleet service and overwhelmingly positive feedback from the force were key to the fleet upgrade.

Tony Deus, head of fleet at Lancashire Police, said: “We already have an excellent track record with Škoda cars on our current fleet – so much so our officers have bought their own. Expanding our fleet with this significant order of cars means we can complete our duties knowing we have reliable, dependable cars that fit the bill perfectly.

“There’s an excellent pedigree that comes with Škoda police vehicles. They’re safe for our officers and we know there’s the back-up of Škoda’s comprehensive service.”

Emergency service fleets can access a full range of cars from Škoda, available for ambulance, police and fire and rescue teams across the UK via the carmaker’s bespoke emergency service converters. This includes full integration of the emergency services’ communications platform within the existing infotainment touchscreen and 360-degree lighting. Approved specialist converters can also cater for individual customer conversion requirements.