I was delighted that the motion I proposed at a meeting of the Full Council last night in opposition to the plans to merge Beds Police with the larger Herts force received unanimous support from all sides of the Chamber. Councillors have spoken with one voice prior to key meetings at the two respective Police Authorities tomorrow, at which the Authorities will vote on whether to proceed with the plans and put them out to consultation.
So, River Festival 2010 is upon us! This weekend, over a quarter of a million people will descend on the Embankment and Russell Park to enjoy what will be the biggest ever River Festival in the event's 32 year history.
The Bedford branch of the Body Shop got in touch this week to ask if I would pop in and sign the petition backing the Body Shop's Stop Sex Trafficking of Children and Young People Campaign. I was obviously only too pleased to help, and when I popped in today I found the friendly team in there all ready to get behind the campaign, with new displays set to go up later in the day. It's a very good little store, and I'm sure they'll make sure sales of the hand cream produced to raise funds for the campaign ('Soft Hands Kind Heart') go well.
I was delighted to help formally mark the completion of the renovated Church Arcade in the town centre yesterday. The £350,000 project, which saw the Council working with the arcade's owner Metropolitan and County Group to in the design of the scheme, has really brightened up the arcade and made it a light, attractive place to shop. In a nice touch, the new canopy over the arcade entrance from Harpur Street has the names of a number of Bedford Sporting icons.
I joined the Council's tree maintenance contractors on site as they tidied up some trees in Quantock Close, Putnoe, last week. More work is being done this year thanks to the money we've put into the budget. Under the old Conservative County Council, just £1.66 was allocated per tree in the urban area of Bedford; we now spend over £11 per tree keeping trees tidy and safe.
The plan approved by the Full Council to re-organise the schools structure as a two-tier system was dependent on funding through the Building Schools for the Future programme. This will therefore not be going ahead, and the Council will not be pursuing a comprehensive restructuring. So, while there is huge disappointment at the loss of the BSF Funding and the halting of the previous agreed plan, our focus is now on the future and on improving education in Bedford Borough.
