Sir Hugh Orde said violence levels in the US were different to those in the UK
David Cameron has called for the former New York police chief to help address violence in English cities.
Association of Chief Police Officers' head Sir Hugh Orde
said: "I am not sure I want to learn about gangs from an area of America
that has 400 of them."
Downing Street has refused to be drawn into the dispute, saying Mr Bratton is to offer advice in a personal capacity.
Speaking to the Independent on Sunday, Sir Hugh, president of
the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), said: "It seems to me,
if you've got 400 gangs, then you're not being very effective.
"If you look at the style of policing in the States, and their levels of violence, they are fundamentally different from here.
"What I suggested to the home secretary is a more sensible
approach, maybe to look across far wider styles of policing and - more
usefully - at European styles; they, like us, are bound by the European
Convention.
"My sense is, when we've done that, we will find the British model is probably the top."
On Sunday, acting Metropolitan Police Commissioner Tim Godwin
told the BBC's Adam Fleming that the disorder had been unprecedented,
impossible to foresee and "inconsistency from Parliament" had made it
harder to police.
He pointed out that anticipated cuts to officer numbers would make policing any future similar disturbances even harder.
He also rejected the Conservatives' criticism of their
tactics, saying "the accusation that my officers acted timidly is
incredibly hurtful".
He added that he expected 3,000 people to go to court over the riots.
Liverpool and Gloucester:
On the appointment of Mr Bratton, other senior police figures have spoken out saying they share Sir Hugh's concerns.
Ian Hanson, of the Greater Manchester Police Federation,
called it a "slap in the face" and said Britain did not need someone
from "5,000 miles away".
"There is anger, there is disappointment, a degree of incredulity as well," he told ITV News.
"What we've witnessed this week has been British policing at its absolute best.
"The police leadership has also stepped forward in support of
their officers and the service and now to be given this slap in the
face by the prime minister and told that he wants to bring in Bill
Bratton to cure all policing ills."
Metropolitan Police Federation chairman John Tully agreed, saying he did not think American advice would help.
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Bill Bratton: "My assignment is to focus on the American experience dealing with gangs"
"Although he has a glittering record across in the States, it's
a different style of policing. The gang culture's different," he said.
And former Scotland Yard Commander John O'Connor said: "The
Americans didn't cure the social problems in New York. What they did is
they locked people up. That's how zero tolerance works. We haven't got
the heart for that over here."
In a statement, Downing Street added that Mr Bratton had
long-standing links with British policing and they thanked him for
agreeing "to make himself available for a series of meetings in the UK
in the autumn to share his experience of tackling gangs".
Tough tactics
On a visit to Manchester on Saturday, Deputy Prime Minister
Nick Clegg played down any dispute between the government and the
police.
"There is no rift... we fully support the police 100%," he said.
"They have done a brilliant job in really difficult circumstances.
"The police themselves have said they want to review what happened and look at tactics and learn lessons."
Extra police numbers will be maintained on city streets through the weekend.
Earlier, Chancellor George Osborne dismissed calls to reverse cuts to police budgets.
He welcomed the advice from Mr Bratton, saying he would help tackle the "deep-seated social problems" behind the riots.
Mr Bratton - credited with restoring law and order in Los
Angeles after riots in 1992 - said: "You can't arrest your way out of
the problem.
"Arrest is certainly appropriate for the most violent, the
incorrigible, but so much of it can be addressed in other ways and it's
not just a police issue, it is in fact a societal issue."
He added: "Part of what the government is going to do is to
take a look at what worked and what didn't work during the course of the
last week."
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