Here at TV Bedfordshire we like to mix things up a little and cover a variety of different things. That's why I'm beyond excited to announce that myself and Jade, another volunteer, have been given the go ahead to produce our own music show with TV Bedfordshire!
Being that we're both HUGE fans of music and love checking out local artists and attending local gigs, there really was no other explination other than to introduce us and let our ideas collide to create an amazing show all about the local music scene.
Bed Rocks (name subject to change!) will feature Bedfordshire's finest bands and artists. We'll be filming exclusive gigs, conducting indepth interviews and basically introducing your lovely ears to some really talented music.
Filming will be starting ASAP but in the meantime, we've gone ahead and set up our own Facebook page at TVBedrocks and our own Twitter @TVBedrocks to help spread the word a bit. We'll be using these accounts to keep you all up to date on how things are going, and we'll be including lots of behind the scenes news and photos. It's hard to stay promiment when things are being filmed and produced and not yet broadcast, so this way you can keep up to date with everything.
Be prepared to get jealous because the team at TV Bedfordshire bagged the amazing opportunity to cover AmpRocks this past weekend (and boy was it a scorcher!). If you haven't already heard of AmpRocks, it's the opening night of Ampthill's boutique annual Ampthill Festival, which is in it's fourth year running.
Lucky for us, we were able to get involved when AmpRocks had one of its best line ups yet with bands The Hoosiers, Toploader and local band Skies on Fire all performing. Better yet, The Hoosiers also held a free meet and greet/signing at a local restaurant within Ampthill city centre, which we also covered!
I'm sure you'll see all the footage soon enough but in the meantime here are some exclusive snaps from throughout the day.
Jade interviewing The Hoosiers as Rob films
Interviewing Skies on Fire
A sneak peak of some of the VIP section. Yes, it was on the top floor of the bus. With free champagne. And amazing views of the stage too.
The stage early on in the day when people were still setting up
Shane in VIP on the bus with the amazing background view!
Media passes!
A view of the crowd when I was allowed to sneak onto stage!
And finally, here's a little video (filmed on my phone so not the best quality!) from the VIP bus!
Keep your eyes peeled for the footage from the festival where we managed to get exclusive interviews with all of the bands and some excited festival attenders!
We've got lots of activity going on in TV Bedfordshire land recently! The second week of the Easter Holiday gave volunteer and teacher Toby Eager a real taste of what it would be like working on TV Bedfordshire full time. The guys registered as a Ltd company recently and will soon be having business meetings to gain advice on future trading opportunities when the company grows and when we are producing more programming.
We have been meeting lots of local people over the past few weeks and have a number of exciting projects in the pipeline. Firstly, we filmed at the Cardington Hangars for the first programme in a series of History programmes to be aired in the Autumn. We also filmed a pilot educational programme for GCSE aged students wanting to improve their maths with local Sixth Form maths whizz Jemma Allman (@Jemma_allman).
Filming at Cardington Hangers
Our recent meetings have included Shaun Jacues(@shaunjacques), a local comedian and soon-to-be sports presenter for TV Bedfordshire, and Tom Wild, Head of Media at Bedford College. Also the producer of the popular local programme The Rough Cut Sessions, Tom met with us and formed a local partnership with us, offering some great ideas for future programming.
We have also developed a partnership with the RSPCA North Beds branch based at Deepdale Veterinary Centre in Potton where we will be doing a monthly feature on domestic animals in need of rehoming.
Filming at the North Beds RSPCA brance at Deepdale Veterinary Centre
The biggest news, however, is that we have now moved premises. We have taken up residence on Bedford High Street and have a wonderful studio base to work from with significant space to film our regular news programme as well as a host of other programming coming to your screens soon. The first programme to be filmed at the new studio will be 'The Beds Book Review', a panel show of literary enthusiasts reviewing books encouraging local people to engage in reading. We are very excited to be based in Bedford but this will not affect our coverage of other areas in Bedfordshire and will continue to feature news and events from around the county. In our next post we will be featuring profiles of some of our volunteers, new and old, so you can get to know us a little better. We will also be featuring some behind the scenes pics of our move to Bedford High Street Studio.
My name is Louise Joy and from here on out I'll be helping to run the blog. I've been on board with the amazing team at TV Bedfordshire for about a month now but I'm so excited for all the upcoming projects we're planning and everything we're up to. I'll be blogging about everything that goes on behind the scenes - different events we attend, upcoming news and a little more information about what we're doing.
I'll also be doing an introductory post soon so you can learn about the team and the many contributors we have on board but for the meantime I'll tell you a little bit about myself. I'm a 23 year old local blogger/writer/journalist, although I technically work part time in retail at the moment. In my spare time however, I'm constantly writing and blogging, networking on websites like Twitter, writing and just generally trying to be as media savvy as possible. Offering a helping hand to TVBedfordshire is a very exciting project for me as I love anything to do with the media. In college I studied Media Production, which covered everything from filming a music video to directing a documentary - it's going to be really fun using these skills again. I also love that I can be quite creative too - I've had many different ideas up my sleeves and I'm pleased to say the team have been on board for all of them. Soon I'll do another post about what these are and how you can get involved at a later date.
During my first official meeting of the team I got to visit the studio, where I was pleasantly surprised to find lots of really professional equipment including flashy cameras and lighting and even a green screen. We'll be moving to another studio soon though because the one we're at now is up a million different flights of stairs so a) that's a lot to climb up when you're carrying equipment and b) we're all too lazy to walk up them all on a regular basis anyway! When I met Toby, Margaret and Kofi I got to sit in and watch the weekly news bulletin being recorded, with Toby presenting. It's a longer process than you think, especially if you mess up or mispronounce something and have to start reading from the very beginning of the script again! Nonetheless, it's important to get things just right because we need to be professional. Luckily it helps to be patient.
We also discussed the fact that over Easter and onwards we'll be launching and recording a comedy show which will be really fun. We'll be getting local comedians in with a small audience as well as hopefully providing a few drinks and nibbles on the night. It's nice that we'll be holding some exciting events too and I'll keep you all updated about when we are filming this as we'll probably need some extra audience members!
Finally, last Thursday I went on my first official outing/filming session for TVBedfordshire with Margaret. We visited The Burnaby Arms, a pub in Bedford that hosts local music, to cover their PR session they were holding. The whole event was because the pub had won the PRS For Music Music Makeover award. The scheme behind the campaign is all about supporting local music and getting local artists playing in pubs again. The Burnaby Arms won a £5,000 cash prize to help spend on professional music equipment so that when artists perform in the pub it sounds as good and professional as possible.
The whole event will be summarised in the news bulletin later tonight (including my presenting/interviewing debut - scary!) but attending on the day was a lot of fun. The landlords had put on a lovely spread of nibbles and we were offered champagne (classy!) and the pub had such a great friendly atmosphere. Some very talented local artists put on a performance for us, and we were even treated to a brief visit from the mayor of Bedford!
Local artists Cicero Buck
I got to interview some really great people - including Guy Fletcher - and admittedly I was nervous to begin with! I thought it would be quite daunting but actually I found once I began interviewing, I started to enjoy myself! It was a lot of fun researching good questions and interviewing interesting people and it's something I'd like to continue doing. I was really pleased when I was even told that my questions were apparently really good!
Filmed on my phone so not the best quality!
All in all it was a great day and better yet we got our name out there and did a bit of networking too. Keep your eyes peeled for the news bulletin tonight showing the footage filmed on the day.
I'll be blogging again very soon about more behind the scenes business and other events and things we have coming up! As always, we are always after contributors so if you'd like to be on board or even if you have an event you'd like covered by us, please don't hesitate to email us on info@tvbedfordshire.com.
We travelled around bedfordshire on Tuesday filming members of the public's views on what we should be showing on TV Bedfordshire. Here is what they are saying.
Lealands High’s Friday Night Project shortlisted in the Teaching Excellence Awards
Lealands High School in Sundon Park has recently been shortlisted for a
prestigious TES Award - Teaching Excellence in School’s awards – which
celebrate and reward the professionalism of those teams making an
outstanding contribution to primary, secondary and special needs
schools.
The school was shortlisted in the category of Outstanding Sustainable
School or Community Partnership Scheme for their Friday Night Project.
Lealands is one of only six schools nationally shortlisted in this
category and the only Luton and Bedfordshire School short-listed for any
category in these awards.
The Friday Night Project is a fantastic free club for up to 60 local
young people to take part in sports activities, which have included
supervised football, street dance and basketball competitions. Over 250
local young people, who come from all over Luton, have subscribed to the
scheme over the past couple of years. The Project is run in conjunction
with Geoff Morris from Sundon Park Youth Centre, and it has a number of
committed volunteers, youth workers and Lealands school staff to enable
young people to participate in organised physical and social
activities.
The project also gives young people a chance to gain qualifications
including Football Association Level 1, Junior Football Organisers
Awards and Duke of Edinburgh Awards, giving participants a sense of
achievement and skills for the future.
The Friday Night Project has made a real difference to the quality of
life for some local young people, and has helped fight anti-social
behavior in Sundon Park. Last year, the Project hosted the inaugural
Community Cohesion Cup in which teams from the Friday Night Project,
Wagad Sports (Somali Youth Group), Bangladeshi Youth League and a team
from the Beds FA competed for the trophy. The event was attended by
Kelvin Hopkins MP as well as the community leaders and local
dignitaries.
Kevin England from the Beds FA said about the Friday Night Project: “It
is a wonderful use of the football facility at Lealands High School
which helps bring together the community and local young people. Beds FA
have used The Friday Night Project as an example of good practice in
other areas of the county and have reflected the same scheme at our own
facility in Skimpot Road in Dunstable. The energy that Phil Payne, the
Community Development Officer at Lealands High School has put into this
scheme is highly commendable, and he has gone beyond what was expected”.
Phil Payne, commented: “We are very proud of the project and would be
enormously pleased to have all of the good things it has done
recognised. Ultimately however, the real success is that the young
people of Sundon Park, and beyond, continue to come back week after week
in all weathers to be part of what is Their Project”.
Cllr Waheed Akbar, Executive Member with responsibility for children’s
services said: “Well done to Lealands High for being shortlisted in this
national award, which is a testament to the positive impact this
project is having on Luton’s young people.”
The TES Awards take place on Friday 6 July at the London Hilton. It
promises to be a spectacular event with over 700 guests expected to
attend, including government ministers and educational professionals
from all over the UK.
For more information about the Friday Night Project, which takes place
from 8pm – 10pm on Friday evenings during term time, please contact
Lealands High School on 01582 611600 or go to www.lealands.luton.sch.uk and click on the ‘community’ tab.
New manager to inspire visitors to attend world class sports village
Dan Palframan was recently appointed the new general manager for
Inspire:Luton Sports Village, a £26 million world class sport and
leisure facility currently being developed in Stopsley and due to open
in August 2012.
A keen sportsman with a love and passion for leisure and health related
fitness and with 15 years’ experience within the public and private
sector of the leisure industry; Dan is determined to encourage members
from different communities as well as talented and elite athletes to
take advantage of the outstanding facilities that Inspire has to offer.
Dan said: “My goal is to help create and run a reputable world class and
community facility that the people of Luton will be proud of and to
develop sports and leisure activities that will have a positive impact
on all our users. I’m looking forward to the challenge and am confident
that with my team, we can deliver great sports facilities for our
customers”
Inspire will house a 100 station Profiles gym, kitted out with the
latest Technogym equipment; Technogym is also the official supplier of
the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. There’s also a spinning
room, dance studio and multi-purpose activity room, providing over 80
classes per week featuring sessions such as Zumba® and Body Pump®, with
all levels of fitness being catered for.
Dan added: “The sports village will offer a number of stimulating and
engaging activities designed specifically for the under-fives and for
our mature users. And with some of the best aquatic facilities in the
country including a 50m, eight-lane main pool with a 10m, world class
diving facility; also 20m, 5-lane community pool with moveable floor
enabling a range of classes to take place, there will be something for
everyone.”
The centre will also have an eight-court sports hall accommodating a
wide range of sports including badminton, bowls, football and
volleyball. Crèche services will be available for under-fives so users
can get fit while their children safely play.
Inspire is attracting a lot of interest for swimming and sports events
to be held within the centre, both regional and national, junior and
senior events have been provisionally booked, and Dan is currently
working with Beds ASA to host next year's county championships.
Cllr Hazel Simmons, Leader of the Council said: “This investment is a
clear indication of our commitment to tackling the health problems that
exist in the town. By having world-class facilities that are available
to all at affordable prices we hope people of all ages will be inspired
to get fit and healthy. When the centre opens in August I can guarantee
that the people of Luton will not be disappointed and will agree that it
was worth the wait!”
The ‘dry’ facilities of the sports village such as Profiles Gym, fitness
classes and the sports hall will be open to the public from Monday, 20
August at 2pm, with the ‘wet side’ – swimming pools - being available
from 6am on Friday, 24 August.
The Paralympic Flame will be coming to Bedfordshire over the August bank
holiday weekend. Details are still being finalised, however, the Flame
will visit Inspire:Luton Sports Village on Monday 27 August.
The Council is delighted to learn Stopsley High School is one of 261
schools to be receiving funding for rebuilding and renovation works from
the Government’s Priority School Building Programme (PSBP).
PSBP replaces the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme which
was abruptly stopped by the Government in July 2010 within seven weeks
of construction works starting on Stopsley High School.
Cllr Waheed Akbar, portfolio holder for children’s services said: “We
are pleased the Government has recognised the need to invest in Stopsley
High School. We believe this news justifies the Council's decision in
2010, when along with other councils we launched a judicial review
against the education secretary’s decision to withdraw the BSF
programme.
“This is good news for the school’s pupils, the school itself and the
town, particularly as Stopsley High School was rated as ‘good’ with
outstanding features in a recent Ofsted inspection. We are looking
forward to hearing more details from the Government about the funding so
we can work closely with the school to move forward as soon as
possible.”
The criteria for applications for grants from local authorities were
very strict. A qualified surveyor was also appointed by the Government
to visit Stopsley High to verify the condition of the buildings. Fewer
than half of those who applied have been successful, with the Government
citing only schools in the worst conditions qualified for funding.
Karen Johns, Acting Headteacher said: “The withdrawal of the BSF
programme was a devastating blow to us. We are delighted the needs of
the school have been recognised and this new funding will be of enormous
benefit to our students and community.”
The Government has confirmed officials from the Education Funding Agency
will be contacting the Council within the next two weeks to indicate
when work will start.
Think Luton, think success – local business website is relaunched
The Council is urging local businesses to Think Luton, think success by
visiting the website of the same name relaunched this month.
Think Luton, think success is dedicated to helping local businesses to
enhance and develop, and encouraging inward investment and growth.
The revamped website is regularly refreshed and updated. It features
the latest business news, innovative ventures, developments, photographs
and a diary of events which any local business can feed into, alongside
seminars and training courses. There is also a blog for businesses to
actively share their good news stories and new ideas.
Excellent advice and support is on hand too for all businesses - new and
old, large and small - to help them to develop, expand and exceed
expectations.
The site divides businesses into 4 key clusters which have developed
around Luton's existing strengths and successful enterprise; these are
engineering and automotive, creative industries, ICT and electronics and
airport and aerospace.
Cllr Sian Timoney, portfolio holder for regeneration, said: “Luton
could easily be described as one of Europe’s best kept secrets when it
comes to business and investment. More and more businesses across all
sectors are recognising this as the place to build and grow a brighter
and better future, and we are already home to major international names
enjoying the benefits of being based here.
“We were very pleased to learn of the results of a recent BBC survey
revealing Luton as one of the strongest areas for business growth in
England. The research, by information analysts Experian, looked at
growth and growth potential and found that the number of new firms in
Luton grow by an average of 4.2 per cent between 2010 and 2012 -
increasing from 9,354 to 10.139 - the third highest in the country."
So take a positive step forward on the ladder of success with Think Luton, think success and visit www.thinkluton.co.uk or call Sayma Khanom for more details on 01582 547970.
A partnership between three Luton organisations has won the Adult Learners’ Week ‘Learning Through Partnership’ award.
The award was presented to the three organisations, Luton Adult
Community Learning, ACE Enterprises (part of SEPT-NHS, Luton) and
voluntary group MAD (Make a Difference), who pooled their resources to
offer a visual arts course to a group of learners recovering from mental
health illnesses.
Learners on the course worked on a project to paint backdrops and make
props for the community play ‘Rainbow Redemption’. The play examined
the often stark realities faced by those living with mental health
illnesses and was performed at Luton Library Theatre in October 2011.
Adult Learners’ Week – celebrated this year from 14 to 18 May -
culminates in an award ceremony which applauds achievement and
recognises good practice in the field of learning across Bedfordshire
and Luton.
The awards, presented by the Learning Partnership of Bedfordshire and
Luton, aim to highlight the value and huge variety of learning
activities which take place throughout the region. In particular, they
recognise innovative developments, which have widened participation and
social inclusion.
There were eight award categories in total and the ‘Learning Through
Partnership’ award was won by the three Luton organisations.
Learners and representatives from the three partnership organisations
attended the award ceremony which was held in the beautiful surroundings
of Shuttleworth College on Friday, 18 May.
David Blakeman, Director of Luton Town Football Club, joined Heather
Maggs, Chairperson of the Learning Partnership to present the winners
with their awards. Award winners were presented with a local award
certificate and a £200 voucher to be redeemed against future courses of
learning.
Mumtaz Mohammed, one of the learners on the course, spoke to assembled
guests to describe how the project has helped him to engage with
creative art and given him a new focus.
Gail Dearing of SEPT-NHS, said: “I remember how this all started – over a
cup of coffee and a discussion. It’s amazing how much can come from a
cup of coffee!”
Teresa King, Informal Learning Manager for Luton Adult Community
Learning, said: “It has been a very proud afternoon for all of us and we
have had a wonderful time today.”
Cllr Waheed Akbar, Portfolio Holder for adult learning, said: “I would
like to personally congratulate all three organisations on this
fantastic initiative which demonstrates the power of partnership working
to make a real difference in people’s lives. This award is thoroughly
deserved and shows the organisations' tremendous contribution to the
community.”
Working in partnership has meant that new creative arts project
associated with the Olympic Torch in Luton celebrations is now underway.
Chart topping singer-songwriter Olly Murs will be dazzling crowds at
this summer’s Love Luton 2012 Festival and there is now an exciting
opportunity for fans to get up close and personal with the double
platinum selling artist.
Luton Borough Council has four pairs of ‘meet and greets’ to give away,
giving eight lucky people the ultimate Love Luton Festival experience.
Everyone who has purchased a ticket for the 7 July concert on or before
Thursday 7 June will automatically go into the draw to win the chance to
meet Murs back stage prior to his performance.
Winners will be selected at random and contacted by festival organisers after the draw.
Discounted tickets including family, student and weekend saver tickets are still available from www.luton.gov.uk/2012festival
Murs told festival organisers that he was looking forward to meeting
some of his fans back stage at Popes Meadow and that he was particularly
excited about performing in Luton for the first time. He said:
"Festivals are loads of fun and I can't wait to play for you all. I hope
you're going to have as much fun as I will.”
Cllr Hazel Simmons, Leader of Luton Borough Council, said: “We’ve had
lots of requests from people on Facebook and Twitter about meet and
greets so we are so thankful to Olly and his team for fitting this in to
his very busy schedule.
"Olly is one of the biggest stars to ever come to Luton and eight lucky
people will be the envy of their friends by meeting him in person as
part of the spectacular Love Luton Festival weekend.
“Make sure you get your tickets before 7 June for a chance to win this ultimate concert experience.”
As one of the UK’s best selling emerging solo artists over the last two
years, Olly Murs has continued to dominate the charts with four number
one singles, a Brit Award nomination for Best British Single and a
sell-out tour. Both his albums have gone double platinum, selling over
1.3 million copies combined.
The Love Luton 2012 Festival will be packed with a huge range of
activities including a spectacular carnival parade, school games, Mela
activities along with music, comedy and dance leading up to a special
Olympic Torch celebration event.
The University of Bedfordshire are platinum sponsors of the festival,
while Heart FM, Motorbodies, The Mall and Walls have signed up to the
gold packages. Noble Solicitors are the official legal sponsors of the
weekend.
For up-to-the-minute information about the festival follow @lutoncouncil
on Twitter using the hashtag #LutonFestival and like ‘Love Luton 2012
Festival’ on Facebook.
Luton Town Centre Transport Scheme moves another step closer
The long-awaited completion of Luton’s inner ring road has moved a step
closer with Government approval for the compulsory purchase orders
required by the Council.
The confirmation by Transport Secretary Justine Greening follows a
three-day public inquiry into the £24 million Luton Town Centre
Transport Scheme, which will also deliver associated transport
improvements on the north side of the town centre, heard by The Planning
Inspectorate at the Strathmore Hotel in January.
Last month, independent inspector Mr JI McPherson informed Ms Greening
that he accepted the “compelling case” for a scheme which is key to
Luton’s future growth and long-term economic prosperity.
Subject to final confirmation of funding by the Department for
Transport, work which is expected to take 18 months could now start by
late 2013 with completion by early 2015.
Cllr Sian Timoney, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, said the scheme
could help attract a £1.5bn investment package to Luton, delivering
around 11,000 new jobs and up to 4,000 new homes.
She said: “Anyone who knows Luton town centre will be familiar with its
congestion issues, particularly at peak times. Not only will this scheme
provide additional vehicle capacity but traffic modelling shows there
will be a significant reduction in that congestion which will also make
the town centre more attractive for pedestrians and cyclists.
“It delivers major benefits for Luton’s retail sector and greatly
improves prospects for the delivery of major regeneration, including the
proposed mixed-use developments at Power Court and High Town Village
and extensions to The Mall shopping centre. It could also help release
much-needed funding for the improvement of Luton station.”
At the centre of the project is a new two-way single-carriageway
‘Gateway Link’ road which will run from the junction of Hucklesby Way
and Old Bedford Road as far as a new signal-controlled junction with
Church Street and Hitchin Road. This section of the route runs between
Midland Road and the railway line and passes under the station
multi-storey car park.
The route then continues into Crescent Road to another new
signalled-controlled junction with Crawley Green Road, and from there
the next section will be made dual carriageway as far as St Mary’s
roundabout.
The scheme includes two new bridges, to cross the mainline railway and
the Luton Dunstable Busway, and also a shared cycle/pedestrian route.
A new access road will run from Gillam Street to serve Midland Road
while Guildford Street will be closed to through traffic to enable an
improved pedestrian connection between the new railway-bus interchange
and the town centre via a proposed new public square.
Cllr Timoney added: “The scheme we are promoting forms a fundamental
part of the integrated and comprehensive regeneration of our town.
“The Transport Secretary’s decision is very welcome news. The Council
has been working hard for more than nine years to get to this point
where we can buy the land we need and enter the detailed design phase.”
Cllr Syd Knight became the 139th Mayor of Luton when he was officially
appointed as the new Mayor of Luton at the Full Council Meeting on
Tuesday 15 May.
A jack of all trades and master of many, his professional careers
include being a civil servant, engineer and even a tailor, with his
claim to fame including making clothes for the American actor Robert
Mitchum and working on the royal train. He finally settled on a career
in social work in 1988 in Luton and qualified as a social worker in
1992. Cllr Knight went on to complete his Masters in Mental Health at
the University of Hertfordshire in 2008.
Cllr Knight and his wife Rose have lived in Luton since 1973, they have three children and three grandchildren.
He was elected to Luton Borough Council for the first time in 1991 and
was executive member for a number of years where he oversaw the opening
of the Noah Training Centre in High Town by Her Majesty the Queen and
was joint founder of the Mary Seacole project.
When Luton became a unitary authority in 1997 taking on the
responsibilities of social services and education from Bedfordshire
County Council, he moved to work in the County Council as a social
worker to avoid any conflict of interest.
Cllr Knight took early retirement in 2003 to fight the local elections
but lost his seat in Sundon Park, he did however regain it eight years
later in the last local elections in 2011.
Cllr Knight said: “It is a privilege and honour to serve the people of
Luton as Mayor of the town. I am look forward to meeting as many
residents and community groups as possible and will do my utmost to
promote all that is good about the town wherever I go.”
The Mayor will support four charities during his year in office: Mary
Seacole which provided support and hostel accommodation for young,
single homeless people; Mercy Worldwide, a faith based organisation
committed to maximizing efforts to provide relief and care to those in
need with a special focus on youth, Age Concern and the Foundation for
the Study of Infant Deaths (FSID) in memory of his daughter Karen, who
died as the result of sudden infant death syndrome, and would have been
14 years old on 23 June 2012.
Cllr Asma Rathore was appointed as Deputy Mayor. She was elected to the Council in 2011 representing Saints Ward.
Cllrs Knight and Rathore will wear their mayoral robes for the first
time at a special ‘Mayor making’ ceremony at the Town Hall on Wednesday
23 May.
With summer fast approaching, Luton Borough Council’s community
development service and partners have organised a series of free family
festivals across the town.
Six community festivals are scheduled throughout May and June that
include a variety of activities for all the family such as face
painting, fairground rides, sports, dance, music, entertainment, arts
and crafts, prize draws and much more.
Officials from the Council and other public services such as
Bedfordshire Police, NHS Luton, the fire and rescue service and various
voluntary and community groups will also be on hand at each of the
festivals to provide information on local services.
The festival is being supported as part of the Council-led scheme –
‘Your Say, Your Way’ – which is all about increasing opportunities for
local people to get involved in decision making so they can help shape
the future of their neighbourhoods.
Along with the fun and activities, the festivals provide a chance for
local people to give their ideas about what the priorities should be in
their area.
The following festivals are confirmed:
Saints Festival
Saturday 26 May, 1-5pm
Alder Crescent recreation ground (next to Saints Community Centre)
Farley Festival and Diamond Jubilee event
Sunday 3 June, 10am onwards
Market Square, Farley Hill, LU1 5RD
South Ward Community Festival
Saturday 16 June, 12-4pm
Green space outside Park Town Community & Children’s Centre
Area North Festival (organised by Marsh Farm Events Committee)
Saturday 23 June, 12-4pm
Futures House, The Moakes, Luton LU3 3QB
Bushmead Community Festival
Saturday 30 June, 2-4pm
Green space near Bushmead shopping parade and Community Centre (Hancock Drive)
Lewsey Community Festival
Saturday 30 June, 10am-5pm
Lewsey Park, Pastures Way
Cllr Sheila Roden, Portfolio Holder for community development, said: “If
you live in any of these areas I encourage you to come along for an
enjoyable family day out. They all double as a great chance for you to
have your say on local issues, and for us to listen to your views and
any concerns.”
Local businesses who would like to pitch or have a stall at any of the events should call 01582 55 66 92 or email yoursayyourway@luton.gov.uk
