Bedfordshire
Operatives on site at homes, estates and businesses across Bedfordshire, by day and overnight.
Our standards
Who you are trusting
- Our operatives86.5%are former public service personnel, whether they be military, police or other public services.
- Many fromTier 1 unitsand other specialist roles across the services.
- Vetted toBS7858+Industry standard vetting plus more frequent DBS checks and social media reviews.
- Every operativeSIA licensedFully insured and at the top of their game.
Woburn, Ampthill and Studham
Two ridges of higher ground
Bedfordshire's most sought-after homes sit on its two ridges of higher ground. In the south, Studham lies on the wooded slopes of the Chiltern Hills, close to the chalk grassland of Dunstable Downs, the highest ground in the county. Across the middle of Bedfordshire runs the Greensand Ridge, with the county's remaining heathland, stretches of ancient woodland and nearly all of its Grade I listed manor houses, Woburn Abbey among them. The Georgian village of Woburn and the market town of Ampthill, beside its Capability Brown parkland, both sit on the ridge among deer parks and estate villages. Our Residential Security Teams provide trained, discreet operatives on site, day and overnight.
Houses on the ridges often sit within larger holdings: parkland, woodland, lodges and estate cottages around a main house. A plan for one of them has to cover the drives and the woods as well as the front door.
Our operations team, managers who all built their careers in specialist policing, runs every Bedfordshire deployment and answers the operations phone at any hour.
Manor house to gate lodge
Parkland, lodges and cottages
Many of the county's finest houses are listed, some at Grade I, with parkland, gate lodges and service buildings around them. Each entrance and outbuilding is part of the plan, not an afterthought.
In the estate villages and the Georgian streets of Woburn, a house may front the road with a garden and outbuildings behind. The team gets to know who normally comes and goes on the street, not just at the house.
Bedfordshire property we know
- Grade I manors set in deer parks
- Gate lodges and estate cottages
- Georgian frontages in Woburn
- Wooded Chiltern plots around Studham
Deer park, heath, ancient wood
Beyond the garden wall
Deer parks, heath and ancient woodland make for long, quiet boundaries. Our rounds take in the woods, the park and every building on them, which discourages theft, break-ins and intruders and, across the larger estates, poaching.
A household with a well-known name has its privacy to think about as well. Gates, drive and guests are handled exactly as you decide, with the team's day built around the family's.
Further support on the ridges
- Heat-camera flights over the deer park
- Thermal imaging in hand as the team crosses the park
- Amphibious or all-terrain vehicles, hired for the job
- Remote monitoring for lodge and house systems
- Alarms at lodge and gate, fitted by partners the day after trouble
Who you will meet
Discreet by design
In an estate village, a security team should look as if it belongs. Country tweeds, smart plain clothes or a full uniform at the lodge gate: the look depends on the effect you want.
Ask for female operatives and we will include them; whoever we send is chosen with the household's habits in view.
Hours that suit you
A single event at the house, a run of nights, or permanent daytime and overnight staffing.
Intruder seen or gate forced
Tell the operations team at once; they will set out the options and timings for you.
Bigger deployments
For a shoot day or a family celebration, extra people can be added inside 24 hours.
Wintering abroad
A Bedfordshire house keeps its team while the family winters abroad, and close protection can travel with them.
Beginning with a survey
A no-cost look at your property
We begin by visiting your Bedfordshire property and assessing its security without charge, from the lodge and drives to the outbuildings and the edge of the woods.
Afterwards we write up a proposal sized to the estate, never padded with extra people, and you see the fees before agreeing to anything.
Our credentials
Why Bedfordshire clients can rely on us
Licences we check ourselves
We confirm that every operative holds a current SIA licence before they set foot on an estate.
Thorough vetting
Vetting goes past BS7858: we look at social media too, and renew DBS certificates more frequently.
Someone on shift who can treat injuries
Medical training is standard for our operatives, every bit as much as close protection.
Cover on the ground and in the air
All our estate work is backed by £10m of public liability insurance; flights by our drones are insured separately, to £5m.
Police careers behind our managers
All of the people who manage BPS operations have specialist policing in their past. Police forces up and down Britain know us well, and we have taught behavioural detection to several of them.
Affiliations
Estate owners can look us up in two places: the British Bodyguard Association, where BPS is a corporate member, and the list of Armed Forces Covenant signatories. Our directors, for their part, hold IPSA, BRITMA and Security Institute membership.
Is all of Bedfordshire within your area, Woburn to Studham included?
Yes. Teams work at Woburn and Ampthill on the Greensand Ridge, at Studham and around Dunstable Downs in the south, and in the villages between, all managed by our operations team.
Can you protect a large estate with several lodges and entrances?
Yes. Each lodge, drive and outbuilding gets its own place in the plan, and after dark a drone and handheld kit, both with thermal cameras, cover the parkland.
Our house is a listed building on the ridge. Does that limit what you can do?
Very little. Much of our protection comes from trained people on site rather than fixed equipment, and if a camera or alarm would help, we agree its position with you before anything is installed.
Can the team mingle with guests at a house party?
Yes. Tweed, jeans or a suit are all possible, and we select people who suit your family and the village.
What goes into a Bedfordshire quote?
Acreage, lodges and gates, and the number of staffed hours you ask for. Underpinning each quote are a threat, risk and harm review and the survey we carry out on the estate.
There was an intruder on the estate last night: how can you help?
Ring the operations line whatever the hour and we can put people on the estate at short notice; our partners then fit monitored alarms and cameras, at the lodge as well as the house, within a day.
Related pages
- How BPS guards homes and estatesOur national residential page, with every service in one place.
- Personal protectionBodyguards for the family once they step off the estate.
- Hertfordshire, over the county lineFamily homes and Chiltern houses on our Hertfordshire page.
- Send the estate detailsOutline the estate and a member of the team will respond.
Residential Security in other areas
Who we are
Operations & training teams
Your Bedfordshire estate, protected
Clients can reach our teams 24/7, 365 days a year, through our 24 hour operations phones. Every enquiry is handled with discretion. Alternatively, make a secure enquiry online.