Policing Large Scale Disorder: Lessons from the disturbances of ...

Home Affairs Committee: Evidence Ev w59
particularly existing fencing around the protest sites. In situ concrete blocks were cast to support
the vertical fencing posts and hoardings were bolted to vertical panels.
4. The Day of the Protests
4.1 Officers from Bradford Council and the Police worked closely with representatives of community and
faith organisations on the day of the protest, ranging from Gold and Silver Command right down to an
operational street level. Information received from the control centre was relayed to colleagues working in the
neighbourhoods and visa versa. Having access to the real time CCTV images meant that key intelligence
messages could be relayed to community contacts in the city centre who were trained and stationed to help
deal with critical situations, should the need arise. The Reassurance and Engagement group used their links
with opinion formers and key contacts. This included individual networks such as faith organisations,
community groups, Voluntary Youth Outreach, Neighbourhood Wardens, Youth Services and Community
Mediators. Their collective responsibilities involved gauging tensions, sharing key messages, identifying issues,
defusing incidents and working as a conduit between organisations.
4.2 Our key message was that the people of Bradford had a right to enjoy their Bank Holiday, without
having it disrupted by people from outside our district who have no concern about our community, no concern
about our local businesses and no interest in our future. Our aim, which was also widely shared, was to make
sure that people could go about their daily lives with as little disruption as possible.
4.3 A joint Police and Council communications team was based in Bradford’s city centre police station on
the day of the protests, receiving information from and reporting to Gold Command. Twitter was used
extensively to provide information and to counteract rumour and misinformation. Partner organisations
retweeted messages to ensure maximum impact.
4.4 A Police leaflet giving advice to the general public on the day of the protests was also produced and
widely distributed.
4.5 Bradfordians showed their opposition, in a peaceful, positive and dignified way, to people from outside
the district using their city as a venue for protests. They did this by staying away from the city centre or by
joining in community celebration events and peace vigils or by taking part in a range of neighbourhood
activities.
4.6 Bradford Women for Peace created a web of green ribbon in the centre of the city to show that the
people of Bradford can share peace through trust and hope in each other. Green ribbons were tied to railings
and posts around the city and by the time a vigil for the city was held on the evening before the planned
protests, the action of these women had come to symbolise the hopes of Bradfordians of all backgrounds.
4.7 Bradford Cathedral and faith groups held vigils. Mosques, churches, community organisations, the Police
and the Council provided neighbourhood activities for young people. “Bradford Together” held a familyfriendly
community celebration near the city centre.
4.8 As soon as the protests were over and as the protestors were being escorted onto the coaches that had
brought them from across the country into our city, the clean up operation began. The Council’s street cleansing
teams worked throughout the night to ensure the city centre was pristine again.
5. The Day After the Protests
5.1 On the day immediately after the protests, people of all faiths joined the congregation from the Cathedral
for prayers to “reclaim” the urban garden space, where the EDL protest had taken place, for the city. This
formed the basis of a You Tube video from the Bradford South Police Divisional Commander.
5.2 Councillors who had been directly involved in the planning for and managing of the protests were
approached by local people, who wanted to tell them how proud they were to be a Bradfordian that day. There
was a very tangible sense of belonging, togetherness and pride in what Bradfordians, of all faith, cultural and
economic backgrounds, had achieved in the immediate aftermath of the protests and this feeling has stood the
test of time.
5.3 The protests in Bradford in August 2010 were acknowledged as a very public test of change since 2001.
The coordinated response, from the Police, Council, private/public sector partners and voluntary, community
and faith groups, meant that all agencies and communities cooperated to minimise the opportunity for a major
incident to occur. The fact that young men in particular, from all communities, chose to keep away was also
testament to a mature local approach to dealing with issues and challenges.
6. Partnership Policy Development and Service Delivery
6.1 The way Bradford responded during the public disorder in some English cities in August 2011 and in
response to the EDL protest in August 2010 was, in a large part, the result of partnership policy development
and service delivery over a sustained period of time.
6.2 Citizenship and community relations