Councillor calls for an end to the destruction of village pubs!

Cllr Nick Charsley, Liberal Democrat Portfolio Holder for Rural Affairs, is today calling for an end to loss of Public Houses, Shops and other facilities in Bedfordshire villages. He is heading up a project to bring together relevant professionals to help support local communities to take over their village pub or shop if it is under threat of closure.

Cllr Charsley said, "Many Publicans and Shopkeepers are having difficulty sustaining their business in the current climate. I'm trying to see if there is any way the Council, as community leader, can help the affected community to take on the business and give it a new lease of life.

"Whether it is a shop or pub it could be so much more with a group of residents running it. A youth club, running workshops and training courses to skill people up. Job opportunities, social events and much more are all possible if the community is willing to get behind such a project."

If you are an owner of a village shop or pub and are struggling and thinking of calling it a day it may be worth talking to residents in your village, they might be interested in taking it on. Cllr Charsley would also be interested in hearing from you. He would also be interested if you're a resident and are concerned about a local facility that is either struggling or has closed.

He concluded, "I am glad to see that the new Government is also joining the growing group of people and organisations who think that communities should be given powers to stop the decline of their facilities. Local residents have the power to change this decline and with support from the Council and business professionals we can save some of our villages from turning into commuter areas for London."

There are an increasing number of enquiries to the Planning Department about 'change of use' applications for rural shops and pubs, the Council has received 3 in the last couple of months.

Bedford Borough Council, under Mayor Dave Hodgson and the Liberal Democrat Group, is keen to find ways of helping rural communities to come together and find their own solutions to community disintegration.

Residents, shopkeepers and publicans wishing to contact Cllr Charsley should do so via is email: nick@dovelane.co.uk telephone: 01234 720247, or write to him at: 4 Dove Lane, Harrold, MK43 7DF.