Policing in Bedfordshire

We are dedicated to ‘protecting people and fighting crime together’.

At 477 square miles and with 664,500 people Bedfordshire is one of England’s smallest (yet most diverse) counties and faces complex crime challenges more usually seen in large metropolitan cities.

More than half of its residents live in its largest towns, Luton and Bedford, which have diverse and often transient communities, alongside smaller market towns and rural parishes.

London Luton Airport, which is the UK’s fifth busiest, handled nearly 16 million passengers in 2016. The M1 and A1(M) motorways traverse the county. Two principle railway lines connect people with the heart of London in less than an hour.

Bedfordshire has a complex mix of volume crime, serious crimes, drugs, gangs and terrorism threats. Every day our officers meet threats, harm and risks like those in large cities. 

Among all English police forces, Bedfordshire receives one of the lowest Government grants per head of population, and is in the lowest quartile for budget and police officers per head of population, and for council tax levels.

We employ in the region of 1,450 Police Officers, 1,196 police staff, 40 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) and 58 Specials (volunteer police officers).

Due to our limited resources, we have a Control Strategy to prioritise how we respond to crime - with protecting vulnerable people the primary focus. There is also a desire to reduce the increasing demand through 999 and 101 calls by offering digital solutions and signposting people to more appropriate agencies.

However, despite our relatively small size, we lead joint protective services (Armed Policing, Dogs, Roads Policing, Major Crime etc.) for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire and are the lead force for the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit – a co-ordinated approach from the seven forces to tackle serious and organised crime, and terrorism.

Recently there has been a push by the force to reintroduce a community policing model to engage with residents and prevent crime by early intervention and problem-solving before issues escalate. You can find out what’s happening in your area here.

Alongside local issues, policing nationally faces new and emerging crime such as cyber-crime, child sexual exploitation and ‘county line’ drug supply and associated criminality.