Bedford Borough Council has approved the acceptance of an £86,130 grant from Bedfordshire Police and the Home Office to fund a new Town Centre Warden initiative.
The decision, taken by Mayor Tom Wootton (Conservative) on 25 September 2025, means the council will deliver additional uniformed patrols in Bedford town centre for the remainder of the 2025/26 financial year.
The funding comes through the Home Office’s Operation Salus, which has identified five town centre hotspots for anti-social behaviour, knife crime and serious violence.
These areas broadly match the new Bedford Town Centre Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO), which is due to launch this month.
Read: New Public Space Protection Order tackles antisocial behaviour but ‘safe’ cycling permitted
According to the council’s report, the wardens will provide “consistent visible reassurance” for people living, working, visiting or studying in the town centre. Their duties will include:
- Daily on-foot patrols in areas where anti-social behaviour is regularly reported
- Pop-up engagement events offering advice and signposting
- The use of anti-social behaviour powers, authorised by the council, to work alongside Bedfordshire Police and other partners
- Identifying and recording environmental issues requiring attention from other council services
- Referring concerns about vulnerable people to appropriate support services
The initiative will provide an additional team of three to four wardens, deployed in pairs on a Monday to Sunday shift pattern. Staffing will be supplied on a temporary basis through an existing provider, covering only the period funded by the grant.
The report notes that not accepting the grant would mean the council could not deliver the initiative. It also states that all costs will be met by the award and “there will be no additional strain on the council’s financial position.”
The Town Centre Warden scheme follows consultation with residents and stakeholders in 2024/25 and complements the forthcoming PSPO, which will address behaviours such as public drinking, begging, dangerous cycling, urination, defecation and littering.
The council said the extra resource is expected to improve perceptions of safety in the town centre.
The decision could be called in by councillors wishing to challenge it, the deadline for this is 6 October.
By John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
