Liberal Democrat Councilor Surgeries
with Charles and Wendy
Brickhill Drive Shops Saturday 10 October.10.00am
Avon Drive Shops Saturday 24 October 10.00am
Brickhill Drive Shops 7 November 10.00am
Avon Drive Shops 21 November 2026
You can also speak with us or another Lib Dem Councillor every Saturday morning 10.00am - 11.00 am at Bedford Central Library
Motorised Menace
Enough is Enough — Help Us Protect Brickhill
Residents across Brickhill have asked for help to tackle the ongoing problem of illegal motorised vehicles. Pavements, sports pitches, the country park and fields off Woodlands Park, are regularly disrupted by e-scooters, quad bikes, motorcycles, and off-road bikes. This reckless behaviour puts pedestrians at risk, damages sports facilities, and harms our community green spaces. The disruption and distress caused by this unlawful activity is not being properly recognised or addressed.
After months of inaction, we have launched a petition calling on Bedfordshire Police and Bedford Borough Council to allocate the resources needed to support Brickhill residents. The current level of enforcement is simply not enough to deter those responsible. The lack of visible action encourages them to continue damaging public property and intimidating residents. Many residents have told us they feel fearful of speaking out because of the intimidation they have experienced. People no longer feel safe going out and enjoying their own neighbourhood or walking their dogs. We are calling for immediate, coordinated action, including increased patrols, use of CCTV, and robust prosecution, to restore safety and peace to our community.
We have repeatedly asked the Police and Borough Council to intervene, but the situation continues to worsen. To be clear, we do not blame our frontline police officers. However, the wider management decision not to intervene more robustly is undermining public confidence in local policing. This is deeply disappointing, especially as it affects hardworking officers who are doing their best under difficult circumstances.
Thank you for your support Cllrs Charles Royden and Wendy Rider
Notes
Residents have reported long wait times when calling the police 101 for assistance, and emails to Bedford Borough Council have bounced back due to failure of their email contacts. Any anti-social behaviour incidents should be reported to Bedford Borough Council at communitysafety@bedford.gov.uk. Please also continue to keep your local councillors informed, email: puttingbrickhillfirst@gmail.com
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News Update October 2026
Cuts to Speed Enforcement
Brickhill benefited from the council’s mobile speed enforcement vehicle, which worked with police to issue first offence warning letters. The Conservative administration has now scrapped this service as part of their cuts — removing a tool that helped keep our roads safe.
Debenhams: More Good Money After Bad
The council has spent £450,000 trying to find a commercial partner to rescue the failed Debenhams project. Only one company showed interest — and they suggested the council might have to sell the £1.8 million building for as little as £1. Working with councillors from other parties, Charles helped pause the deal, forcing the Mayor to reconsider. The proposed agreement risks huge future costs for taxpayers. We await the revised proposal.
Chaos on the Buses
Stagecoach’s cuts have left parts of Bedford without any buses at all. Brickhill kept the Number 6, but the 7 and 10 were axed — affecting residents who boarded on Kimbolton Road. During the worst bus crisis in Bedford’s history, the council removed £300,000 from government bus funding to help bail out its debts. It also failed to spend £1.2 million of government bus funding that could have bought four new buses.
Graffiti
Brickhill has recently suffered form an enormous amount of criminal damage by graffiti on public and private property. Please report any graffiti you see to us or on the council website. We would be pleased to receive any CCTV from doorbells or dashcams of those responsible. The police already have images of some of the offenders responsible.
Roads & Pavements Cuts
Roads & Pavements Funding Cut In July, the Mayor and his Conservative Executive removed £1 million from the roads and pavements budget to help pay off council debts. Bedford has now been ranked among the 13 worst authorities in the country for road condition.
Dave Hodgson Joins Brickhill Liberal Democrat Focus Team
We are delighted that Dave Hodgson has joined the Brickhill Focus Team. Dave went to school and grew up in Brickhill, and he brings a wealth of experience to help support residents. Dave said, “I have already enjoyed being out and about meeting Brickhill residents and one resident in Helford Close remembered me from when I lived there some years ago! I look forward to helping the team.’
Ashmead Road Car Park
Thank you to Woodlands Park residents who volunteered to close the car park overnight to reduce anti-social behaviour. We have used ward funds to install signage showing the new closing times.
Campaign Success
Campaign Success Safer Crossing for Avon Drive
After our sustained campaigning, design work is now underway for a new crossing near The Pheasant. We will update residents as the project progresses.
Footpath between Browney Path and Ashmead Road.
When the council closed this footpath because it was dangerous, they wanted to leave a rough stone surface which was unsuitable for many users including the disabled and parents with biggies. We are delighted that the council took on board our call for a proper footpath replacement and this should be laid soon. Sadly in July the Mayor and his Conservative led Executive took £1million out of the budget for our roads and pavements to help pay of their council debts. No wonder Bedford has been shamed as one of the 13th worst authorities in the country for roads and pavements.
527 Local Roads in Bedford Borough are in the worst 'Category Red.' Cuts this year to the highways spending means that roads in Brickhill are no longer scheduled for resurfacing. We continue to campaign for proper funding and it is imperative that we all report dangerous potholes and pavements.
Telecare Tax
Vulnerable residents have received a letter telling them that Mayor Tom Wootton and his Conservative led Executive have decided to start charging residents who have a personal alarm. These alarms provide peace of mind for older people, those living alone and anyone with health concerns, enabling then to remain safely in their homes. From 1 April everybody will now have to pay £4.00 per week unless they have been assessed by Social Services as needing financial help. Once again, it is the most vulnerable in our community who are having to pay for the waste of this conservative administration.
Council Car Parking Extortion
The Mayor has cancelled free evening parking in car parks and Brickhill residents are being hit with a new flat rate fee added on top of the daytime charge. The moment the clock hits 6.00pm or 8.00pm in some car parks an additional charge is made. If someone parks at River Street at 5.45pm and leaves at 8.15pm, they now pay £5 for up to three hours plus an extra £4 overnight fee — £9 in total for an evening that would cost just £5 during the day. Even a few minutes past 8.00pm triggers the full £4 charge, which has shocked and angered many residents.
The new parking charges are outrageous. After a 25% increase over the last two years, the Conservatives are now slapping residents with extortionate overnight charges that will strangle our restaurants, venues and evening economy. People are battling rising bills, yet town centre visitors are being milked like a cash cow to paper over the Mayor’s financial mismanagement.
Electric Vehicle Charging
Since election nearly three years ago not a single new electric charging point has been installed by the council. We have complained about this failure which is more upsetting as under Mayor Dave Hodgson, funding was applied for under the government council Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) scheme, which subsequently received £1,010,000. Alongside this capital funding, Bedford Borough Council has also been allocated £346,000 in LEVI capability funding to support planning, staffing, and procurement for EV infrastructure. There is no excuse for this debacle and the council must get moving. We have asked that locations suggested by the Parish Council be examined more closely. It is particularly important that support is provided for residents to access who do not have off-street parking.
The failure to allocate new charging is particularly upsetting as under Mayor Dave Hodgson, Bedford Borough Council was ahead of other councils in having installed so many public charging points.
Bedford Borough Council Bankruptcy
Under the Conservative led administration, Bedford Borough Council is stumbling from one financial crisis to another. The Mayor has now created a black hole of £55million as he cannot pay the bills. After only two years of spending more than he can afford, it is devastating to see our council bankrupt. The Mayor inherited a council with outstanding finances and he is now going to the government with a begging bowl. The worst news is that residents are going to have to pay it back with interest for many years, with maximum increases on their council tax.
Campaign Success - But worrying signs
Sale of Land on Ashmead Road Cancelled
Thank to the 574 residents who signed our petition to stop the sale of land off Ashmead Road. Charles Royden presented the petition to Full Council on 14 January and spoke about the importance of protecting this newly planted community green space. His motion to stop the sale of the land was supported by councillors and it was carried unanimously by councillors of all parties. Crucially it was also supported by the Mayor himself who originally made the decision with his Executive to sell the land in the first place!. The Mayor has the final decision on whether this land will be sold and so we welcome his change of mind following the outrage with which it was met in Brickhill. This is an amazing campaign success and gives us hope that we can protect this land for our community for years to come.
Important Update At the latest full council meeting on 4 February, the Conservatives used the sale of Jackman’s Farm as a threat to demand support for their budget, despite having promised that it would not be sold at the previous meeting. This was in spite of councillors from all other parties, including independent councillors, condemning the Conservative budget as a complete failure and refusing to support it.
Another Vanity Project is a Bridge Too Far
Liberal Democrat’s were appalled at the decision by Mayor Wootton and his executive to spend millions of pounds raising a river bridge in Kempston to enable bigger boats to go further up the river. This was agreed by the Mayor and his Executive on 19 November 2025. At a time when the council has been made bankrupt this proposal is beyond contempt. The following evening Charles attended the council Environment Committee and pointed out to Executive members that the £4 million pounds to be spent on Kempston Mill Bridges was more than the council would spend on roads and pavements for a whole year. Thankfully following our opposition this outrageous decision has now been cancelled. You can read the Mayor’s original decision on the agenda papers at 12:5 here in full:
Kempston Mill Bridges – (Gross £4.000 million, Net £0.000 million) – This scheme is for the replacement and improvement of Kempston Mill Bridge. The replacement will include lifting the structure to ensure that the waterway underneath can be used in the future as a navigational route by larger watercraft. (Extract from Executive Agenda 12 (5) 19 November 2025)
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Please sign up for our emails and we will keep you updated with local information.
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How to make reports to Bedford Borough Council
We are often asked how residents can make reports to the council about things like flytipping, potholes or missed bin collections.
We have provided a page with some of the most frequently need contacts.
Click here for contacts to report to Bedford Borough Council
Campaign Priorities
Fighting Back Liberal Democrats have had some success already this year in stopping cuts to our services.
· We stopped proposals to close multi-storey car parks from 10.00pm—6.00am
· We stopped cuts to tree maintenance
· We stopped cuts to winter gritting of roads
· We stopped cuts in grass cutting
· We stopped cuts to street cleansing
For the last two years our warnings to the Mayor about overspending on his vanity projects have been ignored. We are currently spending £450,000 a year to maintain the Debenhams building which has no external tenants. The council is now bankrupt and the Mayor will need to go ‘cap in hand’ to the government for a bailout. We are worried that as well as the 'fire sale' of our green fields there will be more cuts. Already we have seen future proposals including
· Increased parking charges
· Increased council tax
· Cuts to libraries
· Cuts to grass cutting and maintenance
· Removal of public toilets
Most people are extremely pleased at the prospect of the opportunities which Universal will bring to Bedford. Mayor Dave Hodgson met with them some years ago and encouraged them to consider Bedford as the location for their investment. We met with Universal recently and one of the things which came out of the discussion was the employment opportunities. There will be as many as 28,000 jobs and 80% will be filled locally. You can register your interest here now for jobs already with Universal online.
Brickhill Flooding
Flooding is now a frequent problem for many roads in Brickhill and we received requests from residents for advice. The Borough Council has extensive information on its website which advises residents of what to do and who to contact if they are concerned about flooding. Please visit
https://www.bedford.gov.uk/environmental-issues/emergencies/emergency-flooding
Exceptional rainfall has meant that areas previously unaffected have seen surface water issues. The map provides details of long term flood risk and it can accessed on the government website.
https://www.gov.uk/check-long-term-flood-risk
Check out the national Flood Map
BPHA Brickhill Flat Refurbishment
In January of last year, bpha received planning approval to refurbish the five high-rise blocks in Brickhill, these being Frampton, Upton, Evesham, Leighton, and Westbury Court on Avon Drive/Severn Way. Residents have already received copies of drawings and confirmation of the scope of works which we hope will start soon. We look forward to these major improvements.
Anti Social Behaviour
- Please continue to make us aware of any issues. We are always grateful to receive reports from residents and we will always respond to your concerns. If you are worried just call us and we will come and visit you. Our contact details are shown below, you can email, telephone or speak to us directly at our surgeries. You can also use the contact form on our website www.puttingbrickhillfirst.com. We always respond quickly - so phone us if there is any delay when using emails as they can go astray!
- Please will you also report incidents directly to the police. It is vital that these reports are made by you directly as this is the way to get the police to allocate resources. Residents have complained to us about long wait times when calling 101. We would recommend using the online reporting link below
https://www.beds.police.uk/ro/report/asb/asb-v3/report-antisocial-behaviour/
When reporting dates, times and descriptions of vehicle/persons are most helpful as the police are often unable to attend the location immediately but can take action against the registered owners of the vehicles. Thank you for your assistance and please be assured that we will work with you and we will not allow our neighbourhood to become a place where this behaviour is tolerated. You are not alone and when we have become involved in other roads we have always manged to work with residents to bring problems to an end.
Parking Problems
Bedford Borough Council will issue fines (penalty charge notice or PCNs) for the following types of illegal parking:
- parking on yellow lines
- not displaying a valid parking ticket
- parking on pavements or verges where a restriction is in place
- parking across driveways
They will not get involved with neighbourly disputes or inconsiderate parking. If you think a vehicle is abandoned, please report it here.
To report an illegally parked vehicle, please contact the Enforcement Team on enforcement.team@bedford.gov.uk or 01234 718359. Or text only enforcement requests to 07553895403. An enforcement officer will respond to your request as soon as possible, but they may not be able to do so immediately if they are patrolling elsewhere in the Borough. Please note you won't get a reply about the outcome of an enforcement officer visit.
Pavement Repairs
Brickhill pavements are badly in need of resurfacing and repair. We have received some alarming photographs of injuries caused requiring hospital treatment. Please support us in or campaign and report any bad areas like this one in Tyne Crescent. Please report online as this adds weight to our campaign.
Click here to report pavement repairs to
Bedford Borough Council online
Adoption of Roads on Woodlands Park
Charles and Wendy are working with council officers to bring forward the adoption of roads in Woodlands Park from the developers. This is important in order to ensure that proper maintenance is taken over by the council. Click on the map opposite to download. If you would like an update on your road contact us direct using the contact form at the bottom of this page. Some roads are now just awaiting legal process others require additional works.
Trees
Due to council cuts there will be no tree planting after this current season. If you know of any locations where trees are needed please do let us know.
If you have suffered damage from a council tree then you can request compensation. There is no information on this on the council website which we find quite odd, but you can outline your complaint in an email to InsuranceandRiskSection@bedford.gov.uk
Let us know if you have a problem!
Council Meetings
If you have an opportunity to watch the meetings of the full council you can do so
online Home - Bedford Borough Council streaming (public-i.tv)
Sadly the council is now led entirely by a Conservative Mayor and Conservative Executive,
with all other parties excluded and it is something of a shambles, which we fear will only get worse.
