A new private security patrol will begin in Bedford’s Castle Road area from Saturday, 23 August 2025, sparking a heated debate among residents, local councillors, and community leaders.
The initiative, spearheaded by entrepreneur and Real Bedford chairman Peter McCormack, expands on a similar pilot scheme launched in the town centre earlier this month.
Read: Businessman to pilot private security for Bedford town centre, PCC calls it a ‘political stunt’
That scheme has received support from many town centre businesses and also Bedfordshire Police, who describe the private security team as offering a helpful visible presence and “extra eyes and ears” to support policing efforts.
However, the decision to introduce that model into a residential area with a handful of businesses has prompted intense backlash from some Castle ward residents, with concerns about transparency, accountability, and whether the area actually needs additional patrols.
“Castle Road hotspot”
Announcing the plan in a post on the Castle Residents’ Association Facebook group, Mr McCormack wrote: “There has been a steady rise in reports of criminal and anti-social behaviour in the area, everything from shoplifting and burglary, to drug dealing, to women being followed.”
Acknowledging community unease about private security, he said the patrols would focus only on crime and antisocial behaviour, not homelessness.
“These are trained and licensed professionals who have already proven effective in keeping the town centre safe,” he wrote, promising transparent reporting and collaboration with the Bedford Independent to ensure public scrutiny.
Mr McCormack added: “If you are opposed to private security, you are free to ignore them… We want to make [Castle Road] safe again.”
Read: Private security initiative extended for further month after “successful” opening weekend
Community backlash
However, many residents rejected both the premise and approach of the initiative. One ‘Castletonian’, Mawgan Sturge, launched a Facebook poll asking whether residents felt so unsafe that they needed additional security.
At the time of writing, 80% of respondents said “no”.
She also criticised the rollout in another post, saying, “Before installing unwelcome security forces on our streets and spreading misinformation about our community, [Peter] should actually meet us and provide evidence to support his claims, which he has repeatedly refused to do.”
A claim that a local business owner challenged, replying, “Peter did offer to meet us. Publicly. Twice. At his café. I went. He’s been pretty open and clear about his efforts to help Bedford.”
Other comments on the page questioned the need for private patrols, suggested Castle Road was safer now than in the past, and raised concerns about a “power grab” by a team accountable only to Mr McCormack.
One resident wrote, “Placing a privately funded militia on our streets is rarely done without a larger more personal aim in mind.”
Another added, “Castle Road is not a hotspot. [Other areas] are a darn sight worse… These security guys have no power to stop the d*ckhead electric bike morons doing wheelies along Castle Road.”
Editorial note: It would be impractical to include all comments opposing the pilot on the Castle Residents’ Association Facebook group about this subject, but you can access posts here, here and here for further reading.
“Who should fix it?”
Despite clashing with McCormack online over the issue, Peter Element, the owner of the Castle Residents’ Association Facebook group, did acknowledge that there are problems that need to be addressed.
“After 14 years of savage hollowing out of all public services, of course, the police aren’t doing enough,” he told the Bedford Independent. “But the answer isn’t fear and privatised force.”
He criticised what he described as corporate failure to protect frontline staff, particularly referencing Tesco’s profits and the lack of in-store security at One Stop.
“There’s a reason they don’t put security guards on doors, they don’t want to add to the perception of fear. The cost is passed on to us anyway through higher prices.”
Mr Element warned that private security raises important questions about power, accountability, and whose interests are being served.
“It’s a sign of the times how punching down and laser-focusing on security fears is becoming normalised,” he said. “We need to be careful what we’re normalising.”
“We feel safer”
Alongside the criticism, a large number of supportive voices have emerged, many of them from business owners who say the town centre feels safer and more welcoming since the pilot in that area began.
One commenter wrote, “Someone is trying to help in order to keep the community safe as we do not have the police to deal with the high level of crime and antisocial behaviour, and you criticise him? Very strange and disheartening behaviour.”
Another added, “If you can’t see the change, then you’re blind. Crime is up, safety down, and apparently nobody wants to acknowledge or admit it except a few of us and Peter McCormack.
“Let the man spend his money, improve safety for all of us, and help turn this place around.”
Some expressed frustration that critics weren’t offering solutions of their own. “So many negative comments and keyboard warriors,” they said. “Shame they can’t put it in action and help out.
“I’ve heard lots of people say they feel safer in town since the patrol, so well done to everyone involved.”
Others suggested that the focus on Castle Road was justified.
“From the amount of posts on this page, the amount of times the One Stop is robbed, the cars that are broken into and the frequency in which scammers have knocked on doors, surely the positives outweigh the negatives.”
Editorial note: It would be impractical to include all comments in support of the pilot on the Castle Residents’ Association Facebook page about this subject, but you can access posts here, here and here for further reading.
“Where is your data?”
Castle Ward councillor Lucy Bywater (Green) also voiced strong concerns. In a detailed comment, she said crime data regularly shared with her by Bedfordshire Police does not indicate a rise in crime in the area.
She added, “I have never had a demand shared with me for private security on our streets. Police and other emergency services are accountable to us in a way that a private security company cannot be.”
Cllr Bywater acknowledged there had been aggressive shoplifting incidents at the One Stop shop in Castle Road last year but said the situation had improved following community engagement and better security from Tesco, who own the store.
She urged residents to report all crime to the police and use formal channels, “If you feel a crime or suspicion is important enough to warn others of on Facebook, please do report it to police too, or they won’t have the detail they need to start to address it.”
She also expressed concern about how negative online portrayals of Bedford could damage the town’s reputation at a time when major investments, including the Universal Studios project, are underway.
- Read: “I want this town to win” McCormack defends Bedford crime comments after launch of town centre security pilot
- Read: Not all publicity is good publicity
Police cooperation continues
Bedfordshire Police, meanwhile, confirmed that the town centre pilot has been operating in collaboration with their team and suggested that the pilot has been a positive step in dealing with challenges in the town centre.
Chief Inspector Andy Smith told the Bedford Independent, “The security staff deployed in Bedford town centre provide both an additional visible presence and further ‘eyes and ears’ to support our community officers based in the town centre and further afield in Bedford.
“The security team also now liaises with the council’s CCTV provision to help direct cameras to areas of concern to support policing efforts.
“We maintain a working relationship with Mr McCormack and the council, and will continue to work closely with them to ensure the ongoing safety of the public and security staff.”
Unaccountability
In an interview with the Bedford Independent, Mr McCormack pushed back against claims of unaccountability. “We have a statutory right to protect life and property,” he said. “Private security in public places is no different to having CCTV or extra locks on your doors.”
He said the pilot in the town centre had already yielded results: supporting a suspected heart attack victim, assisting with an assault, moving on drug dealing, and helping police by coordinating with CCTV.
“I think it’s been objectively good for the town,” he said. “If there were two police officers walking up and down Castle Road every day, I don’t think people would complain. But they aren’t.”
While critics raised concerns about the broader political implications of private security, Mr McCormack denied any political aspirations and any affiliation with Reform UK, stating, “My initiative is not political.
“I’ve said clearly I won’t be running for mayor or MP. This is about doing something to make Bedford safer.”
He acknowledged the criticism, but added, “The only negative response has been from people who are ideologically opposed to private security. Once you get over your ideological hate and look at the results, it’s hard to argue it’s not working.
“I wouldn’t join the [Reform] party… they did ask me to join and I said ‘no’… I’ve been quite critical of Reform, they’ve lost their way [and are] no different from the Conservatives and Labour party now, it’s just part of the same uniparty.”
Read: “Urgent action” needed to protect staff at local One Stop targeted by criminals
Patrol logs
Since the pilot began, the Bedford town centre security team has recorded over 85 incidents across three Saturdays. The logs, shared with the Bedford Independent and published unedited for transparency, show a wide range of activity, including:
- Supporting medical incidents, including a suspected heart attack and a woman having a panic attack
- Moving on individuals involved in public drinking, aggressive begging, and antisocial behaviour
- Responding to reports of drug dealing, sexual harassment, and robbery
- Assisting with a missing person search and supporting vulnerable people
- Liaising with homeless outreach teams, police, and CCTV operators in multiple cases
The team has also acted as first responders when emergency services were unavailable or delayed, with many cases resolved without further escalation. Readers can view the full patrol logs at the link below.
Read: Private Security Patrol Logs
Complex issue
As Castle Road becomes the latest focus of Bedford’s evolving approach to community safety, the expansion of private patrols has prompted wider discussion about the role such initiatives should play in public life.
While the police have confirmed cooperation with the town centre pilot and incident logs are being published in full, the Castle Road plan has exposed deeper divisions.
Supporters view the patrols as a necessary response to overstretched public services. Critics argue that safety in public spaces should remain the responsibility of publicly accountable bodies.
The debate touches on broader questions: how local communities respond to visible crime and antisocial behaviour, what expectations exist of businesses and public institutions, and to what extent private interventions should be accepted, or challenged, in civic spaces.
With strong views on both sides and further scrutiny inevitable, the Castle Road pilot looks set to be closely watched in the weeks ahead.
Update: This article was updated at 15:28 on 20 August 2025 to add the real name of Mawgan Sturge after she said she did not need to be referred to by a pseudonym.
