The Police and Crime Commissioner, Festus Akinbusoye, hosted the Annual Parish Council Conference online this week alongside senior team members from Bedfordshire Police.

The Annual Parish Council Conference gives the PCC and Bedfordshire Police the opportunity to thank the Councillors for the invaluable work they do to support Community Policing.

The Commissioner was joined by Ward, Town and Parish Councillors from all areas of Bedfordshire along with:

• Chief Exec for the Office of The Police and Crime Commissioner, Clare Kelly
• Deputy Chief Constable, Trevor Rodenhurst
• Chief Superintendent, John Murphy (also Head of Community Policing)
• Chief Inspector, Mo Aziz
• Inspector Cray Birch
• Inspector Sam Hunt
• Chief Inspector Lee Haines

Updates were shared and questions answered about their respective areas of the county.

Councillor Francis Pilbeam said “Thank you for the really informative PCC Annual Parish Conference – it highlighted spectacular examples of just what good collaborative community policing can achieve.”

The focus of the meeting was Community Policing and key themes covered were drugs, speeding, Anti-Social Behaviour.

The Commissioner said “Having this quality time together was priceless and I want to thank everybody for their participation and feedback. There is always work to do but your passion never ceases to amaze me”.

Deputy Chief Constable Trevor Rodenhurst said “Last night’s engagement session was a great opportunity to share with our councillors the fantastic work that our Community Policing Teams are doing on a daily basis to keep the public of Bedfordshire safe. Can I just say a big thank you to all the councillors who took part and to the OPCC for organising the event. Let’s hope the next one is at an actual venue rather than a virtual one”.

Chief Inspector Lee Haines who is also Head of the Community Policing team for the county gave a comprehensive update on Community Policing.  Commenting on the event he said:

“Our parish councillors have been key in maintaining contact with our communities throughout the pandemic, providing them with a crucial point of contact through which they can raise community priorities”.

“It was great to finally thank them all collectively for the work they do to support community policing. As important community representatives, this meeting was a valuable opportunity to showcase the work completed by our fantastic Community Policing teams against priorities set by the public. It was also a vital opportunity to listen to ideas and feedback from councillors, further shaping the evolution of community policing in Bedfordshire”.

If you’d like to contact the OPCC please email PCC@bedfordshire.pnn.police.uk