This is the time of year when self-help manuals fly off the bookshelves faster than a Usain Bolt false start! “This book can make you thinner, richer, confident, beautiful, the envy of your dinner-party friends” they scream.

Self-help and self-reliance are important qualities, ones that tend to separate the high performers from the rest.  In a competitive jobs market it is therefore important a College tries to develop these qualities, and demonstrate them too.

For the community these qualities are equally important, especially at a time of major cuts in public services. I would much rather use the phrase “self-reliant communities” than “Big Society” because it more strongly implies the need for all individuals to make a commitment to their locality.

In recent months there have been some fantastic examples in Bedford of groups making our community richer, socially and economically.

Karen Fryc and Sam Price have done a fantastic job developing and promoting the Castle Quarter.

Meanwhile Kayte Judge and Erica Roffe’s:  “We are Bedford” is another inspiring example we should all applaud.

The new BedfordBID Director Christina Rowe has made an excellent start bringing together all our local businesses.  BID is classic self-help with members pooling their levies so they can be used collectively for the better benefit of Bedford.

Perhaps  it is no coincidence that all of these are led by women!

Bedford College is keen to play its part.  The redevelopment of tricky or long-unoccupied parts of our historic High Street like the old Yorkshire Bank building and the empty former Superdrug store to our Bedford Learning Centre and a state-of-the-art Hair & Beauty Salon. This means we have added two new education businesses with a combined turnover of over £2m p.a. employing nearly 30 people.

This year Bedford College topped the £250,000 mark for BedfordBID vouchers provided to staff and students, money that can only be spent locally. Because we are the largest provider of education locally it is easy to overlook the fact we are also one of Bedford’s biggest employers.  In the last 15 years we have increased staff numbers from 252 to 752, and those extra 500 people add a lot to our community through their hard work but also through their local spending, especially at Christmas!