A petition to save Eltham Police Station has been launched as it is set to close as part of £400m of cuts to Met Police.

The Greater London Authority (GLA) proposals to save money includes plans to only have one public-facing police facility per borough, according to Greenwich Council.

In Greenwich the one remaining public-facing police station will be in Plumstead, which means Eltham’s police station will be closed.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has launched a consultation on reducing the number of police front desks throughout the capital. The Mayor’s office said that reducing the front counters will enable an additional £10 million – the same it costs to have 170 constables – into frontline policing in London’s communities.

Mr Khan said: “The huge Government cuts to the Metropolitan Police Service have left us with no choice but to take drastic action to protect the frontline of policing.

If plans are finalised, the two stations – neither of which are open seven days a week or for more than two hours – will be amongst 41 other front desks to face the chop in London.

“My top priority is keeping Londoners safe, and every pound saved by closing a front counter is a pound of savings that we do not have to find by reducing the frontline.

Greenwich Councillor Charlie Davis, of Eltham North, launched the petition to save the station, which already has over 500 signatures.

The petition says: “The Police Station plays an important role allowing residents to report crime and anti-social behaviour in the area, it is also home to a number of back office facilities and processes carried out within the Borough.

“If Eltham Police Station is closed as recommended, the only police station for residents to report crimes to in the Borough would be Plumstead.

“We call on the Mayor of London to reconsider his inclusion of Eltham Police Station in his planned closures, and keep the station open.”

Speaking at a meeting of Greenwich Council on July 19, council leader Denise Hyland said every one of the councillors would regret any closure of front-facing police stations.

Cllr Hyland said: “What’s important is policing on the ground and a front facing office. All of us in would regret the closure of any reporting facility the police currently operate, including Eltham police station.

“If that is reduced to just Plumstead…We need bobbies on the street, and we need police stations where people can go report crime. It’s not helpful to any of us to see police facilities close.

I” remember as a child there was a police facility in every neighbourhood not just the three town centres. Yet here we are in 2017 with our public being faced with having to go online or got to telephone because they cannot go around to their local police station.”