May/June 2016
The newsletter for residents of Leighton Buzzard and Linslade
Published by Leighton-Linslade Town Council
POLLING DAY
Thursday 5 May
Sunday 5 June 1100hrs-1600hrs
What’s for lunch ?
Join the Town Council in
Leighton Buzzard High Street, on
Sunday, 5 June between 1100hrs
and 1600hrs for an amazing day of
food, music and fun for all ages.
Fancy a slice of wood-fired
pizza? How about some Jamaican
jerk chicken or Indian street
food? This year’s festival brings
an exciting array of foods from
around the world. Along with
traditional British fare, experience
the flavours of Spain, China, India, Germany, France, America
and more - a variety to suit all
tastes from vegetarians to sweet
lovers or BBQ fans.
Plenty of activities will keep
the family amused throughout
the day. Enjoy live music, watch
food demonstrations, sit with a
refreshment from the Double
Decker Bus Bar or browse craft
stalls. There are loads of games for
kids, glittery tattoos, a climbing wall
and much more. Watch out for the
stilt walkers!
Visit www.leightonlinsladetc.gov.uk/big-lunch-2016/
for more details or search
#BigLunch
In this issue
2
3
5
6
The Honour is all ours
A Community to be Proud of
Band Concerts
Farewell from the Mayor
Leighton’s Fun Runners celebrating the Queen’s 90th Birthday
W: www.leightonlinslade-tc.gov.uk
NEWS
NEWS
Help with jobs
A Community to be Proud of
celebrating local people
Are yOu looking for work or
support to find work?
A large number of organisations
will be on hand providing advice
Q: How does ittofeel
toyou
be afind
recipient
the
help
work atof
a special
Honorary
Burgess?
event on 11 February 2015 from
9.30 until 1pm at the royal British
Roy Gibbons
(2007 recipient)
legion, Bossard
Hall, West Street,
“it has introduced
me to many
leighton Buzzard
lu7 1DA.
volunteersCome
and has
enriched
along at any time
my life”
between
9.30am and 1.00pm if you
would like some training or support
Phyllisthat
Savage
(2008
recipient)
leads
towards
employment or
“pride
to be
would
likeasked”
to find out a little more
about the support choices to help
you find work.
Gill Brazier (2009 recipient)
“it is an honour”. Gill runs a
The Title of Dignity ‘Honorary Burgess’ 2016
• Are yOu aged 16-21yrs old and
youth club and supports those
was awarded to two local women on 10 March
looking for work or apprenticeship?
with special needs and writes:
In ADDITIOn
to the general
election
to decide
national
this year. Patricia
Armstrong
and Hilary
Lennon
of government,
Do you need advice on creating or
“members of the youth club call
parish
town councils Cancer
in Bedfordshire
up for
the and
Leighton-Linslade
Support are
Group,
areelection on 7 May
updating your CV? Do you need
me a “Burger” – let’s all go to
2015.
both cancer survivors and have been the nucleus
support in applying for jobs or
McDonalds they say!”
Bedfordshire
Association
of Town
& Parish
Councils (BATPC) will be further training?
and
driving force
of the group
for several
years.
holdingTown
a number
general information
the county to let
MayorofCouncillor
Ray Berry events
said, “Itacross
is
TACTIC now has a Work Club
WhiteWednesday
(2010 recipient)
people
know
what parish
and towntocouncils
always
a humbling
experience
honour do,
localand what is involved inAlanevery
from 12.00pm –
“a warm
feeling
of
being
becoming
Councillor.
people awho
tirelessly give of themselves to help
1.30pm where you can drop in or
appreciated
community”to see our
The event
area willfor
bethe
held
on 10
February
others.
It isinsoour
important
Town
Council
to 2015 from 7.00pm
makebyanthe
appointment
to 8.30pm
at Mentmore
Pavillion,
linslade.
show our
gratitude on
behalf of
our community in
youth worker for 121 support and
If you
are interested in getting more involved in your community, and advice. Access to computers, job
this
way.”
Greenand
(2013
recipient)
want toThe
findgroup
out more
about
being
a parish
councillor, why not come Myrna
meets
each
Friday
from 1030hrs
search
a hot
cuppa – all free.
“I
am
very
proud
to
have
been
along
to the event
in your
town?Army Hall, Lammas
to 1230hrs
at the
Salvation
For further information
contact
nominated”
and
“nice
to
know
our
Tea, coffee
and delicious
will be
available
Walk
and offers
support tocakes
sufferers
of any
type offrom 7.00pm. There
Phil Hood on 01525-373838 or just
is along
appreciated”
willcancer.
be a short presentation describing the role of parish councils and work
pop
for a chat to kick start
what councillors
do.ofSome
of yourcandidate,
current councillors
will be available to your new future... new year... and
If you know
a deserving
the
chatTown
informally
about
current
plans
and activities.
Council
will be
inviting
nominations
for 2017
new you!
Many previous recipients share a statement
from June until October. A nomination form will be
which reads, “It is nice to be recognised for your
available to download from our website from June
efforts and to be nominated by your peers”
onwards (www.leightonlinslade-tc.gov.uk )
The Honour is all ours
How to become a Councillor
Will you be celebrating the Queen’s
90th Birthday with a Street Party?
Three days of events to celebrate the Queen’s official
90th birthday will be held in London culminating on
Sunday 12 June with The Patron’s Lunch, a huge street
party on The Mall.
This is also National Big Lunch Day and street parties
will be taking place throughout the country. Are you
planning to organise one? If so, you can find helpful tips
by visiting www.thebiglunch.com
2
now a
fully lice
nsed
wedding
venue
Leighton-Linslade Town Council Official
Official
Leighton-Linslade
NEWS
A Community to be Proud of
Meet the Town Crier
Q: So how did you get into
‘crying’?
I was ‘volunteered’ to enter the
competition held during the Town
Carnival of the millennium year.
There were 3 or 4 contestants
and we all had to read a very long
script without a microphone. I won
and my prize was to dress up as
the Town Crier on the living history
day and ‘cry’ at various places
throughout the town. I enjoyed it
immensely. Q: What do you enjoy most
about the role?
The best thing about the role
is meeting different people and
engaging with them. Everyone is
very friendly and I stop for chats
with folk throughout the day. Many
visitors to the parish will ask for a
photograph with me to show their
friends at home.
Canal Festival - Saturday 30 July
Q: What’s your day job?
My day job is working for Central
Bedfordshire Council as a building
surveyor for housing repairs. I
was also a retained fire-fighter
at Leighton Buzzard for 29 years
but I retired 3 years ago. There
were many occasions when my
alerter would sound and I would
have to run through the town in
my Town Crier’s outfit to get to
the fire station. I would then take
off the cloak and hat and put on
my fire fighting kit and go to the
fire still wearing my waistcoat and
breeches beneath the fire kit. [Is
anyone thinking Superman here?]
Q: Have you had any scary
moments?
The most scary time was standing
at the Market Cross at 0900hrs
Q: Do you want an apprentice?
When I first took on the role as
Town Crier it was always intended
to be shared between two people,
however no one else showed any
interest at the time. It would be
great if I could have an apprentice
or someone to job share the role with.
The Town Council is blessed with residents who have worked
alongside us in delivering our projects and events. One such
person is Malcolm Chaney.
In 2002, Malcolm volunteered to assist the Town Council with
the first Linslade Canal Festival and thirteen years later continues
to work closely with the Canal & River Trust to ensure water levels
and towpath maintenance are in place prior to the event. Malcolm
takes the lead on meeting and ensuring suitable moorings for all
the attending narrow boats. He has been an important member
of the event’s team of volunteers. Now retiring as the events
Moorings Warden, he has encouraged a fellow boater to take on
the role and will oversee this changeover for the 2016 event.
Malcolm has a passion for the outdoors volunteering since
2008 with Friends of Linslade Wood and is currently the Treasurer
for the group. Enjoying the peace of the open air and the colourful
landscape of Bluebell Wood, Malcolm was determined to support
the wood’s Green Flag award application which received a
recommendation.
Malcolm Chaney in Linslade Wood
Peter Hailes “crying” at the
Linslade Canal Festival
3
on the morning of the first ‘living
history day.’ Once I started it was
fine, but it was plucking up the
courage to start that was difficult. W: www.leightonlinslade-tc.gov.uk
NEWS
celebrating local people
Emily (16yrs old) and Demi (18yrs old)
Business
Networking
Event
Come to Astral Park for
your
Beautiful Wedding
Ceremonies Receptions
Catering Fully Licensed Bar
Forget the bad press about a few young people and ‘listen
up’ about the rest of the community’s vibrant youth. We
asked TACTIC’s youth volunteers, who together have
delivered 166 hours of volunteering, a few questions ….
How did you get involved with volunteering?
Demi - I was doing a CV at TACTIC and a member of staff at
TACTIC suggested volunteering to gain more experience.
Emily - I saw volunteering advertised in TACTIC and always
wanted to work with children.
Savannah - TACTIC encouraged me to become involved at
the TANG group. (Teenagers with Additional Needs Group)
What do you enjoy most about volunteering?
Demi – Getting to know kids’ personalities and expand their
horizons.
Emily - Hearing children’s stories about their week.
Savannah – Interacting with other young people.
Have you had any ‘special’ or funny moments during your
time?
Demi – I enjoyed working on the play scheme and leading on
an art activity.
Emily – TANG
Christmas party we
all had a good time
and played fun games.
Savannah –
Christmas time was
fun when we played
a game of singing
a song to the group
with a certain word
in it.
Savannah (16yrs old)
ABOUT TOWN
www.leightonlinslade-tc.gov.uk/
your-community/astral-park/
01525 851019
PUBLIC MEETING
22 June 1400hrs – 1600hrs
at Pages Park Pavilion
We are very aware that transport
to local hospitals and healthcare
appointments is particularly difficult
for some elderly & vulnerable adults
in our community, especially those
who find public transport difficult or
are unable to get lifts from friends
or family. A working party has been
formed to address this issue and
investigate ways in which we might
set up a voluntary patient transport
scheme.
We are currently planning a
public meeting which is to be held
on Wednesday 22 June for anyone
interested in helping to get the
scheme off the ground. We are
hoping for volunteer drivers, help
with administration, or anyone who is
just interested to come along.
For further information contact
Pam Brown on 01582 429860
[email protected]
E: [email protected]
4
COUNCIL NEWS
Local businessman WINS a Kindle
The lucky winner of the 2016 Business Networking
Event prize draw, is Adam Balme.
Aside from his
excitement at
winning the Kindle
Fire, Adam felt
the evening was a
winning experience
overall.
“As a fairly
recent business
owner, the Business
Networking Event
was very useful
in helping me introduce myself to the LeightonLinslade business community” says Adam. “I
found real value in meeting people I didn’t expect
to meet, broadening my outlook as well as my
network.” Over 120 business people who attended
the successful event would agree with him.
Adam is one of Cloudtopia’s team of Customer
Relationships Management (CRM) application
consultants specialising in the Salesforce.com
scalable cloud-based platform and working with
businesses to help maximise their investment in
CRM applications.
If you would like to know more about
Cloudtopia, please contact Adam Balme on
07784 650056 or at [email protected]
MAY
Fri 6 Sat 7
Speciality French Market, Town Centre
( 0900-1700 hours)
Sat 7
Pop-Up Market, Town Centre (0900-1600 hours)
Tues 17 Love Your Local Market, Town Centre (0900-1600
Tues- 31 hours)
Sat 7
Leighton-Linslade in Bloom Plant Stall, Fly Past
Monument (0900-1500 hours)
Sat 21
Farmers’ Market, Town Centre (0900-1600 hours)
Sat 28
Craft Market, Town Centre (0900-1600 hours)
JUNE
Sat 4
Pop-Up Market, Town Centre (0900-1600 hours)
Sat 4
Leighton-Linslade in Bloom Plant Stall, Fly Past
Monument (0900-1500 hours)
Sun 5
The Big Lunch Food Festival, Town Centre
(1100-1600 hours)
Sun 5
Band Concert - Hitchin Band playing in Parson’s
Close Recreation Ground (1500-1700 hours)
Sun 12 Leighton-Linslade in Bloom Open Gardens
Linslade, various locations (1200-1700 hours)
Sun 12 Band Concert - LB Salvation Army Band playing in
Parson’s Close Recreation Ground (1500-1700 hours)
Sat 18
Farmers’ Market, Town Centre (0900-1600 hours)
Sun 19 Band Concert - Dunstable Town Band playing in
Parson’s Close Recreation Ground (1500-1700 hours)
Sat 25
Craft Market, Town Centre (0900-1600 hours)
Sun 26 ‘An Afternoon at the Movies’ - Band Concert.
Watford Band playing in Parson’s Close Recreation
Ground (1500-1700 hours)
The summer programme of Sunday afternoon
band concerts runs through June to September
from 1500hrs to 1700hrs in Parson’s Close
Recreation Ground. This year’s programme
includes two new themed concerts; an “Afternoon
at the Movies” and a celebration of our Town
Twinning. Refreshments are available and don’t
forget to bring a chair.
The annual evening concert of Proms & Picnic
in the Park takes place in August and we look
forward to your support and robust singing!
Sun 26 Leighton-Linslade in Bloom Open Gardens
Leighton Buzzard, various locations (1200-1700
hours)
Regular weekly
sessions held at Astral Park
Activities range from health classes, children’s
activities and interest groups.
To view the calendar of events visit:
www.leightonlinslade-tc.gov.uk/your-community/astral-park/
Please note: event location, dates and times may be subject to change
Responsible
for:
ABOUT TOWN@LLTCNews
5
COUNCIL NEWS
Council Committee dates
Committee meetings start at 1930hrs and
are held in the Town Council Offices unless
otherwise shown below. Please note these
may be subject to change, please check the
LLTC website.
May 2016
Mon 09
Wed 11
Mon 16
Grants Sub-Committee
Planning & Transport Committee
COUNCIL ANNUAL MEETING
(Astral Park)
June 2016
Wed
Mon
Mon
Mon
Thur
Mon
Wed
Mon
01
06
13
13
16
20
22
27
Planning & Transport Committee
Leisure & Community Committee
Accounts Sub-Committee (1600)
Policy & Finance Committee
Partnership Committee
Events Sub-Committee
Planning & Transport Committee
COUNCIL
BE ACTIVE in the summer months with
TACTIC
Sports and team games for young people
aged 11-16yrs will take place after school every
Wednesday at Mentmore Park from 1 June –
20 July (1530hrs – 1730hrs).
The sports in the park provided by TACTIC
Youth Workers will offer young people access
to safe, fun and free sports activities. Get active
for summer and improve your health, wellbeing
and confidence.
For more info contact Joe Head on 01525-373838
or email [email protected]
NEW YOUTH CLUB at Pages Park with
TACTIC
TACTIC will be opening a new weekly
youth club for young people at the Pages Park
Pavilion on Tuesdays 1530hrs – 1800hrs from
31 May. Young people aged 12-19yrs are
welcome to attend to join in a variety of fun
activities and make new friends. Pop along
during the half term week to find out more. “As we approach the Council’s Annual General
Meeting, and my handover of the Chain of Office to
my successor, I have to say how much pleasure I
have had in serving you as your Mayor over the past
2 years. The opportunity to meet so many dedicated
and enthusiastic people has been a privilege, as
have been the many occasions on which I have
been welcomed by our Town’s businesses, learning
just how many diverse products we are involved in
producing, marketing and transporting!
I must also emphasise my thanks to everyone
For further information contact Phil Hood on
01525-373838 at the TACTIC Centre.
who has, throughout these two years,
supported my charity fundraising
activities. Finally, my thanks to my dear
wife, Val who as Mayoress has been by
my side on so many occasions, helping
me in serving our community.
One of my last official duties was to light the Town
Beacon, in celebration of Her Majesty the Queen’s
90th Birthday. I couldn’t have asked for a greater
honour or a finer finale to my time in office, for that,
thank you all.”
Whilst every effort has been taken to provide accurate information, the Council does not accept any
liability for error or omission for information on services it is not directly responsible for.
Leighton-Linslade Town Council,The White House, Hockliffe Street, Leighton Buzzard, Beds LU7 1HD
Main switchboard: 01525 631920 [email protected]
6
W: www.leightonlinslade-tc.gov.uk
Printed by Eagle Graphics (Printers) Limited, Leighton Buzzard. Tel: 01525 384893
Farewell from the Mayor