I was delighted with the announcement from CBC that the proposed new leisure centre for Leighton Buzzard and Linslade had moved on to the consultation stage, and if it is decided to go ahead, a planning application will be submitted by the end of this year. An artist's impression of the new leisure centre The … Continue reading Mythbusters – Leighton Buzzard Leisure Centre
Over the past few weeks a number of equally controversial issues have arisen – some new, some over 40 years old. There is speculation about the purchase of the Post Office site on Church Square[1]. There are planning applications to build housing on the site of the garden centre, and commercial buildings adjacent to Roman … Continue reading Planning frustrations
As I speak to local residents and read comments online, it is very clear there are two issues that concern people more than anything: policing and health. When I talk about Town Council and CBC projects – playgrounds, leisure centres, the town centre for example – almost without fail I will receive comments to the … Continue reading Policing, Health and the role of the Councils
The paper on the public consultation on the proposed boundary change between Leighton-Linslade and Eggington was presented at Thursday’s meeting of General Purposes. Currently, the new housing to the east of Leighton Buzzard is in Eggington Parish. However, in every other respect they are part of Leighton Buzzard: they are sold as being in Leighton … Continue reading Parish Boundary Review
Before explaining my role as the Co-Chair of the Corporate Parenting Panel, I probably need to explain what a ‘Corporate Parent’ is. All Councillors and employees of Central Bedfordshire Council are a ‘Corporate Parent’. They share a collective responsibility for providing the best possible care and safeguarding for the children and young adults in the … Continue reading How you can help looked after children
When one thinks about the Council’s responsibilities, you probably think about roads, leisure centres, rubbish collection, schools and housing. And of course, planning and development. These are the issues that affect us all. Increasingly, Adult Social Care – and in particular care for the elderly – is something that attracts headlines, and this is the … Continue reading Our looked after children and young people …
Tomorrow – May 17th – we reach the next major milestone in the easing of Covid restrictions. We will be able to meet with friends and family indoors, larger numbers will be able to attend weddings and funerals, and many indoor entertainment venues – cinemas, play areas and the like – will re-open. And if … Continue reading The end of lockdown
A few weeks ago I wrote on my blog about the land south of LB High Street. In that post, I made what I considered to be a realistic assessment of the likely future use of the site and the timescales. At the same time, I urged residents to be wary of promises of community … Continue reading South of the High Street and free parking …
So, just what does ‘the council’ do? When you ask someone what ‘the council’ does, you will get a variety of answers, but with some common threads. Firstly, you will get those who don’t think ‘the council’ does very much. Each month they pay a not inconsiderable amount of Council Tax, and yet feel they … Continue reading What does ‘the council’ actually do?
There have been two hot topics on local social media sites this week. Firstly, there have been accusations flying around that I – together with my colleagues representing LB South ward on CBC – have been trying to block Councillors from other Leighton Buzzard and Linslade wards from ‘calling in’ planning applications for scrutiny by … Continue reading This week on social media …
Amanda Dodwell 