Category: Central Bedfordshire Council
What do you think of the roads across Central Bedfordshire?
An online survey has been opened for Central Bedfordshire residents to share their views on road maintenance in order to inform the council’s future planning.
Central Bedfordshire Council is just one of over 100 Local Authorities to sign up to the National Highways and Transport Public (NHT) Satisfaction Survey. The standardised survey that will ask members of the public exactly the same questions, whether they live in Central Bedfordshire, Edinburgh or London. Participating councils can then compare results and share best practice.
The online survey is open to all Central Bedfordshire residents and covers views about highways maintenance including roads and pavements, potholes, street lighting, drain clearance and gritting as well as looking at traffic congestion, road safety and accessibility.
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Central Bedfordshire Council officers undertake checks for Blue Badge misusers
A recent council crackdown on Blue Badge disabled parking fraud means that six dishonest drivers are facing possible court action.
Central Bedfordshire Council undertook an exercise on 24 October and 7 November to ensure that disabled parking permits are valid and being correctly used across the area.
Blue Badges allow a disabled person to park in a disabled bay. These allocated bays provide a fundamental lifeline for disabled people, allowing them to live independently and go about their daily lives easily by giving them convenient priority parking spaces close to their destination.
During the spot-checks, council officers examined 172 Blue Badges. Out of these, they discovered six instances where the badge holder wasn’t present, which the council will be investigating further.
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BT plans to remove 30 public pay-phones across Central Bedfordshire
Do we still need public phone boxes or does mobile technology mean they are no longer needed? BT have launched a consultation to remove 30 of the remaining public payphones across Central Bedfordshire that have been identified as unnecessary, and the public are invited to have their say.
As part of this process, we are required to undertake a public consultation and to inform BT of the results.
The consultation which runs from Tuesday 5 November 2019 until Tuesday 3 December 2019 enables residents to comment on whether they agree or object to the removal of each of the 30 phone boxes identified by BT as no longer necessary.
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Decision on proposed waiting restrictions for Red Lion Close deferred
Central Bedfordshire Council’s (CBC) Traffic Management Committee has decided to defer a decision on the proposed waiting restrictions for Red Lion Close.
The full proposal was to introduce no-waiting at any time, no waiting on Mondays – Fridays 8:00am to 9:30am and 3:00pm to 4:30pm and no restriction parking bays in Red Lion Close and to implement a footway buildout at the junction of Walk House Close and the High St.
Red Lion Close is a residential road which includes Holywell School. Residents have been highlighting the issues with inappropriate parking and traffic congestion at school peak hours for a number of years. Cllr Sue Clark told the Committee that these concerns have centred around the safety of the school children and not by any inconvenience suffered by the residents.
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Have your say on polling districts in Central Bedfordshire
Central Bedfordshire Council is conducting a review of its polling places and polling districts.
The review is an ideal opportunity for electors, community groups and other interested people to share their opinions on the existing polling district boundaries, polling places, and polling stations and, where possible, suggest alternative solutions. Although a review is carried out every five years, it does not prevent changes being made at any time between reviews.
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Central Bedfordshire Council’s new gritters need new names
Central Bedfordshire Council (CBC) has a fleet of ten spanking new gritter lorries coming to replace its 10-year-old ones.
Instead of just spreading salt like the older ones, they can spray a mix of brine (salt-water) and rock salt. Traditional grit needs vehicles travelling over it, dissolving it, before it starts to melt snow and ice.
With this system roads become clearer much faster, especially less well-travelled ones.
To celebrate the new fleet, CBC is asking residents to suggests names for them. It is easy to put forward a name, just email namethegritter@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk and the Council will pick the best.
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Firework season sparks Central Bedfordshire Council checks to keep the public safe
Central Bedfordshire Council’s public protection team will be visiting over 40 retailers to ensure that the public aren’t being sold dangerous fireworks.
Officers will be inspecting retailers’ premises to ensure that the fireworks are being stored safely and securely, away from possible sources of ignition and damp.
A number of other checks will be carried out to ensure retailers are behaving responsibly and complying with the law, including checks to confirm that the retailer has the required registration or licence to legally store and sell fireworks and that the fireworks conform to relevant safety standards.
Retailers will also be reminded of the age restrictions that apply to the sale of fireworks: those under the age of 18 are not allowed to buy fireworks or handle them in a public place.
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Planning Inspectors give feedback on Central Bedfordshire’s draft Local Plan
Following a public examination of Central Bedfordshire Council’s (CBC) draft Local Plan this summer, The Planning Inspectorate has provided formal feedback to the council.
CBC received the feedback on 30th September 2019, but delayed publication until 14 October 2019 while it sought to resolve a number of legal issues regarding the content and process being followed.
The Council said that correspondence from third parties referred to by the Inspectors had unusually not been sent to CBC as the Local Planning Authority and the promoter of the Local Plan.
The focused letter raises a limited number of issues for the Council to respond to. In particular clarifying the content of some of the policies for strategic sites and issues around the current Sustainability Appraisal (SA).
The Council’s website says that no issues were raised in relation to a number of key points.
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Central Bedfordshire Council wants your views on the area’s future
Roadshows, pop-events and a new website www.centralbedfordshire2050.co.uk will be used to capture views from residents as well as businesses and local organisations.
Residents are being urged to imagine what Central Bedfordshire will be like in 30-years’ time as the council launches a major consultation with residents.
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Trading Standards warning over smuggled pup
Buying a cute puppy overseas may be cheaper and a cute puppy may be a good addition to a family, but Central Bedfordshire Council Trading Standards is warning well-meaning residents to be aware of the requirements for bringing a pet into the UK.
Earlier this week, officers from the trading standards team stepped in after receiving a report that a Houghton Conquest resident had recently entered the UK from Ireland with a new puppy without following the law.
As a result, the puppy was required to be taken into quarantine for monitoring and will now be microchipped and receive a rabies vaccination, all at the owner’s expense.
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Opposition councillors react as they believe questions to leadership were filtered
Opposition councillors reacted in anger during Open Questions at the Central Bedfordshire Council’s (CBC) full meeting held last week (26 September 2019).
Cllr John Baker (Independent, Aspley Guise) reported on his Facebook page that the question box for Open Questions was empty and claimed that the questions were not being drawn at random.
The agenda item allows councillors to question the council leader and his team.
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Call for transparency over how council’s New Homes Bonus grant is spent
At last night’s full Central Bedfordshire Council’s (CBC) full meeting yesterday (26 September 2019), Cllr Adam Zerny (Independent, Potton) put forward a motion that, if approved, would mean that half of the News Home Bonus (NHB) grant paid to CBC would be spent based on priorities set out by parish/town councils and ward councillors.
NHB was introduced by the Coalition Government to encourage local authorities to grant planning permissions for the building of new houses in return for additional revenue.
Local authorities have flexibility on how to spend the un-ring-fenced grant, but local councils are expected to consult communities about how the money will be spent.
By using this grant, councils and residents will know that more new homes will mean more money to pay for the increased services that will be required, to hold down council tax, or both.
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