Bedford Borough Liberal Democrats

To celebrate Great Big Green Week this year, Bedford Borough Council are holding a number of exciting and interactive events online and in the town centre.

The Council are working in partnership with the Great Big Green Week Bedford and Bedfordshire Climate Change Forum to bring the events to Bedford Borough residents.

Commenting on the Government cut to Universal Credit, Liberal Democrat Councillor Dean Crofts said "The decision to rip support from millions of families across the country shows how completely out of touch the Prime Minister really is. He claims that he wants people to live by their own efforts rather than welfare. So either he doesn't know that almost half of those receiving Universal Credit are already in work or he doesn't care."

In 2020/21, 3,465 tonnes of "high quality" glass was collected from over 50 mini recycling sites across Bedford Borough.

According to RecycleNow, each time just one tonne of glass is recycled, about 580kg of carbon dioxide is saved through the supply chain.

This would mean that in just one year, Bedford Borough residents have saved over 2 million kg of carbon dioxide by dropping their glass off at local bottle banks, and this high quality sorted glass can be recycled and back on shelves as new bottles and jars within a few weeks.

Bedford Academy officially launched their school radio station on Monday. In attendance were Mayor Dave Hodgson, David Morris, CEO of HEART Academies Trust, Christopher Deller, Headteacher and Justin Dealey, BBC 3 Counties radio.

The radio station was the brainchild of Ms Vinette Hoffman-Jackson, BA STEM Coordinator and Radio Lead. Ms Hoffman-Jackson stated "Equipping our students with effective communication skills will lay the foundation for future successes. Our priority is to provide first class education and support to all students who attend our school through innovations and research"

Bedford Borough Council has listened to parents, carers, practitioners and school staff, about how they would like to have improved information on where to access support for mental health and wellbeing.

Working together with the Bedford Borough Parent Carer Forum, BLMK CCG, Voluntary Sector, Public Health and CAMHS services the Council has created a dedicated page on the Bedford Borough Local Offer to bring the support and guidance into one easy to navigate space. The page includes; adult mental health support, wellbeing support for teaching staff, and where to signpost young people who may need additional support and guidance.

Mayor Dave Hodgson will be starting the 2021 Village Tour this coming Saturday (18th September) with visits to Elstow, Kempston Hardwick, Stewartby, Cople, Willington and Great Barford. The Village Tour will run until 10th October.

Mayor Dave Hodgson said "This year's Village Tour was delayed due to the Coronavirus pandemic and I am glad that we are in a position to go ahead. I will be visiting villages across Bedford Borough to listen to residents' views and answer any questions."

The latest weekly coronavirus snapshot for Bedford Borough has been published.

The figures show that in the seven days up to September 5th:

• 7,851 PCR tests were taken
• There were 488 Coronavirus cases (16 fewer than the previous week)
• The weekly positive cases per 100,000 population was 281.6 (down from 290.8 in the previous week)