Outgoing police chief Colette Paul brands new operation model her ‘legacy to Bedfordshire’

A new police model which outgoing chief constable Colette Paul calls her “legacy to Bedfordshire” will be in place by early 2016, it has been announced.
PCC Olly Martins has started the search for Colette Paul's replacementPCC Olly Martins has started the search for Colette Paul's replacement
PCC Olly Martins has started the search for Colette Paul's replacement

Under the new plan Beds Police will split its resources into four teams; control room, communities, response and intelligence.

The newly formed response team will only deal with urgent incidents while the community team will handle scheduled appointments that are not time sensitive.

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The force says that this unit will increase “problem solving capability within communities, improve intelligence gathering and help with demand reduction.”

Under the scheme the amount of ‘hubs’ the force uses to respond to emergency calls from will be doubled from two to four.

Monday marked the start of a transition period in which Beds Police will work towards the new operation model.

The move comes a month after voters across the county overwhelmingly voted ‘no’ on a referendum to increase the force’s council tax precept by 15.8%

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Colette Paul claims that under the new model the force will be able to “work smarter”.

She said: “During the coming months we will continue to get everything in place to ensure that we have the right numbers of people with the right skills in the right locations.

“In the meantime, officers will support each other across functional boundaries to embed the new model.

“Protecting people is at the fore of what we do and our officers do a fantastic job but this model will help them to do it more efficiently and ultimately more effectively.

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“I am extremely excited about the new model and consider this my legacy to Bedfordshire. It combines the traditional values of community policing with a new, technology-enabled way of working.”

Police and crime commissioner Olly Martins added his support for the force’s new way of working.

He said: “The new operating model delivers on the two priorities I have set for the force; visibility and vulnerability. There will be a community policing footprint in each part of the county and, making the best use of mobile technology, neighbourhood teams will be more visible to the public, whilst prioritising those most vulnerable to crime.”