A Bedford councillor has questioned the appropriateness of a Facebook post by the Bedford Community Policing Team, describing it as “appalling” and “insensitive” to vulnerable individuals.
During Wednesday night’s (25 June) extraordinary meeting of the Bedfordshire Police and Crime Panel, Bedford Borough councillor Tim Caswell (Lib Dem/Bedford Borough Council) read out a question on behalf of what he called a “very experienced magistrate”.
The magistrate had asked him to raise the matter with Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) John Tizard, urging him to refer the issue to Bedfordshire’s chief constable.
“I’m well aware how strongly the public feels about antisocial behaviour and street drinking,” said Cllr Caswell.
“But this post begins with the words: ‘Roll up Roll Up it’s PC Pete’s Pop-Up ‘Party-Pooping’ Parade at St Peter’s Green! That’s right, PC Pete is bringing his ASB disrupting engagement to St Peter’s Green again this Saturday!’”
“Appalling”
The post went on to say, “Bring your extra-strength alcohol along with you… Crack open your alcoholic drinks, illegally enjoy your beverage from one of the many benches we provide…
“Please note there are no toilet facilities, but if we catch you, you will be having an all-expenses-paid trip to our custody suite where we can provide such facilities.”
Cllr Caswell said the magistrate had described the tone of the message as “appalling”, particularly as it appeared to mock people suffering from addiction or street homelessness.
“I just wondered what you thought of that,” he asked the PCC, “and if you would ask the chief constable whether he thinks this is an appropriate way for the force to communicate with the public.”
In response, Mr Tizard said he wasn’t familiar with the specific post but would follow up.
“Banter aside”
“Prima facie, it would appear not to be something that was appropriate,” he said.
“But I think we need to be careful about confirming what it is and where the source is, because there’s a lot of misinformation on social media. If you pass that to me, cllr Caswell, I will take it forward.”
A link to the post was later sent to the Local Democracy Reporting Service. The same Facebook update included a follow-up line:
“All ‘banter’ aside, consuming alcoholic drinks, urinating and defecating in public spaces, and any other ASB will be dealt with accordingly. You have been warned!”
Police response
Community policing superintendent Hob Hoque said: “We are passionate about tackling issues which matter to our residents and are committed to keeping people updated about the work we are doing to address ongoing problems such as anti-social behaviour.
“As part of that commitment, we encourage officers to lead our community policing social media channels as they are most in tune with the concerns raised by people living in our towns and villages.
“While given training and support, these officers are not social media experts but do their best to strike a balance between providing relevant updates which resonate with our communities while remaining sensitive to vulnerabilities or underlying issues which may be driving behaviour.
“We appreciate that on this occasion the message was not received by partners as intended, and we have discussed with colleagues a different way of approaching such issues in future.
“The overwhelming feedback we receive in relation to community posts are positive and supportive of our efforts to keep people safe.
“With regards to tackling street drinking and related anti-social behaviour, we will continue to work closely with partners and other services to offer support and intervention to those who require it, while taking appropriate action on any activity which negatively affects the communities we serve.”
Originally by John Guinn
rewritten by Paul Hutchinson
Update: This story was updated on 30 June 2025 at 11:37 to include a response from Bedfordshire Police. The comment was issued after publication of the original story.
