Central Bedfordshire Council: Community Action Day triumph in Potton

Date Added: 28/10/2022

We've completed another successful Community Action Day, this time in Potton.

Partners were out in force helping residents with a range of issues that matter to them and making a big difference in Potton.

This included carrying out high visibility patrols, providing advice, meeting residents and businesses, tidying up and making noticeable improvements to the local area.

In response to reports of anti-social behaviour and other community safety issues, our Safer Communities Team, Safer Neighbourhood team, Grand Union Housing Group and Bedfordshire Police Officers carried out patrols and door knocks to engage with residents, understand their concerns and offer help and advice. Our Safer Communities Engagement Officer also shared bike marking kits to provide cyclists with added security.

We held information stalls in The Market Square throughout the day with our Safer Communities and Partnership, Public Health and Environment teams on hand to talk to residents. Officers shared crime prevention advice about how to report a range of community safety issues and asked them to fill in the Safer Central Survey, provided important health guidance and highlighted how residents can reduce waste and recycle better.

Potton Town Council, Grand Union, our Health Hub, Gypsy and Traveller and Domestic Abuse teams, and police officers were also available to offer invaluable information and assistance.

Another engaging feature in the Market Square was our ‘Trash Cube’. The cube contained litter our Environmental Services team had picked up from the pavement around Potton. It showed an example of the eye-opening amounts of litter that we manage daily and aimed to encourage residents to dispose of their litter appropriately. The team also undertook their normal street cleaning duties in the area.

Our Trading Standards team visited firework retailers to ensure residents aren’t being sold potentially faulty fireworks and were pleased to only find licensed fireworks on sale. Our Highways team also undertook some repairs in the High Street.

Bedfordshire Police undertook a weapons sweep and conducted speed checks with Potton’s Speed Watch group.

The Bedfordshire Probation Service had people doing their community service clearing footpaths; this included removing debris, sweeping and edging footpaths and cutting back overhanging branches.