Sir - As a regular visitor to Bedford it amazes me how often the council appears to have a self-destruct tendency with its historic town.
Most towns would protect or enhance their beauty spots but the latest Bedford ‘clanger’ is to situate 12 ugly galvanised posts of approximately three metres height on either side of the Duckmill Weir.
This is a historic place of beauty and is believed to be where John Bunyan was baptised.
Most towns would protect a site of this nature and mark it with perhaps a statue or more impressive plaque.
The town bridge is very attractive but badly in need of a clean up and paint for the historic plaque.
What of the High Street? Dirty and stained with badly damaged paving.
One coffee shop has six holes in a glass cover over the cellar.
These have been broken for more than five years to my knowledge and surely must be a health and safety issue. When it rains there are pools of water all around the town due to poor drainage on sunken paving.
A classic example is the ‘lake’ near the phone box at the bus station.
Someone needs to walk around the town and make a note of all essential work which is already staring them in the face.
Louise Cairns St Mary Street, New Bradwell, Milton Keynes
Editor’s note: We asked the council what the poles at Duckmill Weir were for and it said they were to allow canoe slaloming. Money was received from Growth Area Funding but the Viking Kayak Club will be operating them.
Protect our green fields
Sir - I am increasingly concerned about the Government’s planning reforms.
They’re right to talk about protecting Green Belts, National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty when decisions are made about where development should take place, but what about the 60 per cent of England’s countryside that is none of these things - like a lot of our local countryside? Since 1945, successive governments have protected the countryside for their own sake - which means thinking carefully before building in the countryside, and ensuring it is an option of last resort.
For almost 20 years there has been a requirement that land that’s been used before - brownfield land - should be developed before green fields.
The Government is proposing to abandon this policy, yet a new report by the Campaign to Protect Rural England demonstrates that the supply of brownfield land is increasing - there is enough to provide 1.5 million new homes.
Protecting the countryside and building on brownfield land go hand in hand.
Time is running out - I gather that Ministers are considering the final changes to their new planning policies.
If something is not done soon to get them to change their plans, much of our countryside will be at risk.
Readers can use the action on the Campaign to Protect Rural England’s website to write to their MP: www.cpre.org.uk I would hope Nadine Dorries our MP will support developing brown field land and protecting green field land if her maiden speech to the House of Commons is to be believed.
Lionel Yarde Rectory Road, Steppingley
Don’t park on paths
Sir - Further to the recent articles on car parking in Bedford, may I congratulate Bedford Borough Council on providing hundreds of free parking spaces in and around the town and its environs.
I am unsure as to the name given to these new parking facilities.
I believe they used to be called pavements and were previously used exclusively by pedestrians and occasionally bicycles where permitted.
I am of course assuming that this has been sanctioned by the borough council as neither they nor the local constabulary do anything to prevent or punish this practice.
So don’t you worry about those of us with a disability, or who are elderly, or with a pushchair, and are forced to try to squeeze past these vehicles or even forced onto the road itself.
As long as those poor motorists are catered for, that’s all that matters . . . apparently.
Martin Green Williamson Road, Kempston
Proud of our record
Sir - With reference to your article in Bedfordshire on Sunday (January 8) regarding the standards achieved by Bedford Borough middle schools in the 2011 SATs tests, you stated that Margaret Beaufort has been put in Special Measures (September 2011).
This is incorrect.
We are justly proud of the very pleasing results achieved at the School last May (top in the Borough), and we are aiming to sustain this high level of performance across the Academy Federation of North Bedfordshire Schools.
The staff, pupils, parents, governors and the local community were delighted with the outcome, which was the result of some excellent teaching and a great deal of hard work by the pupils.
Indeed, our quality assurance indicators, as confirmed by the Bedford Borough School Improvement team, suggest that at the next Ofsted inspection, due this academic year, Margaret Beaufort will be judged as at least ‘good’ with many outstanding features.
Michael Lavelle Executive Head Teacher (Middle Schools) Academy Federation of North Bedfordshire Schools
Editor’s note: Our article ‘Schools fail to shine in English and maths’ stated that Margaret Beaufort had been put in special measures.
It should have stated that Beauchamp Middle School in Hawk Drive, Bedford, was put in to special measures last year.
We are happy to clarify this.
Maintaining waterworks
Sir - I would like to take this opportunity to reassure our customers in Bedford about the water mains work Anglian Water is carrying out in the area (Works to pull plug on water supplies, BoS January 1).
The work we are undertaking is part of our routine maintenance programme to remove sediment from water pipes, work which is constantly being carried out across our 37,000 mile network. We will be working in the Bedford area for three weeks, ‘flushing’ through the pipes which serve more than 5,000 properties.
Customers will have received a letter from us detailing on what day and how they will be affected, as well as what measures they might like to take to further minimise any inconvenience.
Most people’s supply will only be interrupted for an hour or so on a single day and their water will be safe to drink throughout the work.
Water may appear cloudy or discoloured around the time of the work, although this can be cleared by running a kitchen tap for a short time.
We are working hard to keep any disruption to an absolute minimum and will be happy to assist with any further concerns customers may have.
Antony Innes Anglian Water
A memorable Xmas
Sir - I would like to tell you about the Christmas Day which my wife and I spent at Milton Ernest Hall.
As we are fast approaching our century we decided, two years ago, that the time had come to give up the struggle of looking after ourselves and, after much cogitation and heart-searching, selected the hall for the few years left to us. We are delighted with that choice and especially after experiencing the superb day which we had on December 25.
Every effort had been made to mark the occasion, starting some days before, with the quite lavish decorations which had entailed so much thought and work.
We were awakened for breakfast as usual and when ready, we went downstairs to be greeted warmly by all members of staff.
Champagne and snacks appeared and we went into the decorated dining room and a Christmas lunch was served which we all enjoyed - nothing had been overlooked.
We had reservations as to what the day would be like as it was the first Christmas that we had spent away from our family but our fears were quite unfounded. We cannot but praise the effort that had gone into making this a memorable day.
Hugh and Phyllis Jones Milton Ernest
Have you found my bag?
Sir - May I ask if anyone has found a bag that I lost a couple of weeks before Christmas? It is a soft cloth bag in an orange patterned fabric with the words ‘Give me joy in my heart’ on the front in a blue/green colour, I think.
The bag was made for me by my daughter Clare following the death of my favourite Aunt who died on February 29, 2008 aged 100.
Clare was a great support to me on that day and the bag quoted Aunt Marian’s favourite hymn which was ‘Give me joy in my heart, keep me praising’. Aunt Marian was always singing and she sang that hymn very often. I would be very grateful for its return and am prepared to offer a small reward for the safe return of the bag. I think I may have dropped it in the town centre somewhere near the Post Office or the library.
Anne Simmonds Goldington Green, Bedford
Beliefs and truths
Sir - It is broadly true that “reality” is an agreement by like-minded people and if the view is reiterated sufficiently, it becomes a “belief” – as distinct from “the truth”.
Your paper can reinforce an agreed reality by the choice of news item and, by implication, what you print is a true reflection of your readers’ views (“We’d soon be out of business if we didn’t”), the effect is to create a self-fulfilling prophecy that the readership supports a given “reality”.
Because youngsters (late teens, early 20s) through exuberance and lack of experience tend to feature in the selected reporting of misdemeanours (“What our public want”) this can imply that the younger generation is going to the dogs.
I should be interested to know if the implied reality of the news you report might benefit from a short period of ‘experimental journalism’ in which an additional paragraph is added (by invitation) to the foot of a news report headed “The Devil’s View”(?) which presents an alternative to the postulated reality.
The project might add an intellectual challenge to both the readers and a quiet Sunday pint at the local.
John Burnett Station Road, Oakley
