Bedfordshire Police is the

territorial police force A territorial police force is a police service that is responsible for an area defined by sub-national boundaries, distinguished from other police services which deal with the entire country or a type of crime. In countries organized as federations, ...

responsible for policing the

ceremonial county The counties and areas for the purposes of the lieutenancies, also referred to as the lieutenancy areas of England and informally known as ceremonial counties, are areas of England to which lords-lieutenant are appointed. Legally, the areas i ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

in England, which includes the

unitary authorities A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governme ...

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst t ...

Central Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created in 2009. Formation Central Bedfordshire was created on 1 April 2009 as part of a structural reform of local government in Bedfor ...

and

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

. Its headquarters are in Kempston, Bedfordshire. , the force has 1,317

police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

s, 151 special constables, and 1,084 staff. It covers an area of , with a population of 665,000.

History

A professional police force was established in Bedfordshire in 1839, under the

County Police Act 1839 The County Police Act 1839 (2 & 3 Vict c 93) (also known as the Rural Police Act or the Rural Constabularies Act) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was one of the Police Acts 1839 to 1893. The Act enabled Justices of the Pe ...

, replacing the earlier system of elected parish constables. It initially comprised a chief constable, who was based in

Ampthill Ampthill () is a town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, between Bedford and Luton, with a population estimate of 8,100 (Mid year estimate 2017 from the ONS). It is administered bAmpthill Town Council The ward of Ampthill which also ...

, 6 superintendents and 40 constables. Constables were paid 19

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence ...

s a week, which was nearly twice the typical wage of an agricultural labourer in the county at that time. There was an independent

Luton Borough Police Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

from 1876 to 1947, and then from 1964 to 1966, when it amalgamated with Bedfordshire Constabulary, which was then known as the Bedfordshire and Luton Constabulary until 1974. In 1965, Bedfordshire Constabulary had an establishment of 497 and an actual strength of 430. On 11 June 2007, PC Jon Henry, was fatally stabbed whilst on duty in the town centre of

by a Nigerian

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...

, Tennyson Obih. Obih was convicted of his

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the ...

, along with the

attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven y ...

and

wounding with intent Grievous bodily harm (often abbreviated to GBH) is a term used in English criminal law to describe the severest forms of battery. It refers to two offences that are created by sections 18 and 20 of the Offences against the Person Act 1861. The ...

of two other men that he stabbed on the same morning.

Chief constables

* 1840–1871 : Captain Edward M. Boultbee (first chief constable of Bedfordshire) * 1871–1879 : Major Ashton Cromwell Warner * 1880–1910 : Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick J. Josselyn * 1910–1939 : Lt-Colonel Frank Augustus Douglas Stevens, (accidentally shot in October 1939) * 1939–?? : Commander the Hon. R. D. Coleridge * 1940–1953 : Commander William John Adlam Willis * 1953–1971 : Henry Prichard Pratt * 1971–1979 : Anthony Armstrong * 1979–1983 : William Sutherland * 1983–1985 : Sir Andrew Kirkpatrick Sloan * 1985–1996 : Alan Dyer (10th chief constable of Bedfordshire) * 1996–2001 : Michael O'Byrne * 2001–2005 : Paul Hancock * 2005–2010 : Gillian Parker * 2011–2013 :

Alf Hitchcock Alfred Henry Hitchcock (1958 – 16 June 2017) was a British police officer. Hitchcock joined Lancashire Constabulary as a constable in 1977 just before his 19th birthday. He rose through the ranks to superintendent and served as associate dire ...

* 2013–2015 : Collette Paul * 2015–2019 : Jon Boutcher * 2019–present : Garry Forsyth

Structure

Bedfordshire Police has collaborated in the formation of several specialist units with Hertfordshire Constabulary and Cambridgeshire Constabulary including Major Crime, Dogs, Firearms and Roads Policing. The force also leads regional units including Eastern Region Special Operations Unit and Eastern Counter Terrorism Intelligence Unit with forces in Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex. In June 2015, the force implemented a new operating model – which comprises north and south bases and aims to increase the number of warranted officers in local communities.

Initiatives and controversies

Bedfordshire Police publish results of cases on their official website, such as a drug gang who were jailed for 39 years. In 2014, Bedfordshire Police allowed cameras into the force 24/7 to film a fly-on-the-wall documentary, '' 24 Hours in Police Custody'', capturing some of the issues faced by police officers today. The last series ended in June 2016, but more episodes are planned for the near future. In July 2015, Bedfordshire Police was the first force in the country to secure a

female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

(FGM) protection order. The court order allowed officers to seize the passports of two young girls who it was thought were being taken to Africa. In 2016, Bedfordshire Police's cadets scooped a national award for their outstanding contribution to helping to reduce crime and creating a safer community.

Resources

The force's 202122 budget was set at £127.4million. Previously, in 2017, funding pressures meant that Bedfordshire Police had considered not responding to some low level crimes. Kathryn Holloway stated that the force has made almost £35M in cuts and would face further cuts of £11.4M to £12.5M over the coming four years "if things remain unchanged". , the force has 1,317

s, 151 special constables, and 46

police community support officer A police community support officer (PCSO; cy, swyddog cymorth cymunedol yr heddlu, SCCH), or as written in legislation community support officer (CSO; cy, swyddog cymorth cymunedol, SCC) is a uniformed member of police staff in England and Wal ...

s (PCSO), 20 police support volunteers (PSV), and 1,084 staff.

Governance

The first

Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner The Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner is the police and crime commissioner, an elected official tasked with setting out the way crime is tackled by Bedfordshire Police in the English County of Bedfordshire. The post was created in Novem ...

was

Olly Martins Oliver James Martins (born 17 December 1969 in Cambridge) is a British politician. He served as the Labour and Co-operative Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner from 2012 to 2016. Career Martins spent eight years working for Victim Suppor ...

, who was elected on 15 November 2012 and took office on 21 November 2012. The performance of the police and crime commissioner (PCC) is scrutinised by the Bedfordshire Police and Crime Panel, made up of elected councillors from the local authorities in the police area, and two independent members. Before November 2012 the Bedfordshire Police Authority was the police governance. On 5 May 2016, Kathryn Holloway became the second PCC, after winning the vote against Olly Martins and other candidates.

Festus Akinbusoye Festus Akinbusoye is a British Conservative politician who was elected as Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner at the 2021 election. Akinbusoye is the first black Briton to be elected to this role. He is also the only PCC from a Black, As ...

was elected PCC in May 2021 election. Akinbusoye assumed office on Thursday 13 May 2021 The Office of Police and Crime Commissioner's permanent chief executive officer is Clare Kelly. The "Our Force" control strategy determines operational priorities, helping Bedfordshire Police to protect people and fight crime.

PEEL inspection

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), formerly Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), has statutory responsibility for the inspection of the police forces of England and Wales, and since ...

(HMICFRS) conducts a periodic police effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy (PEEL) inspection of each police service's performance. In its latest PEEL inspection, Bedfordshire Police was rated as follows:

Gallery

References

External links

*
Bedfordshire
at

HMICFRS His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), formerly Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC), has statutory responsibility for the inspection of the police forces of England and Wales, and since ...

The complete Roll of Honour for Bedfordshire Police
compiled by the Police Roll of Honour trust {{Authority control Police forces of England Organisations based in Bedfordshire 1966 establishments in England Organizations established in 1966