Houghton Regis News Desk

Results for an Election of a Parish Councillor for Houghton Regis (Part) Houghton Hall 27th October 2016 WELCH Tim, Liberal Democrats, 299 WINTER Alan, Editor Houghton Regis News Desk, 153 HILLYARD Beka, Community Independent, 131 Turnout 9.57%

Blockade: noun, " an act or means of sealing off a place to prevent goods or people from entering or leaving." Planned Road Closures: Bedford Road is planned for 10/10/16 – 21/10/16 Poynters/Porz is planned for 22/10/16 – 30/10/16 A huge number of yellow signs are going to be in place to warn people of the closure well in advance of the roundabout, as well as the usual red ROAD AHEAD CLOSED signs. Thorn Road is planned for 24/10/16 – 28/10/16 EVENINGS ONLY 21:00 – 06:00 Bedford Road is planned (again) 31/10/16 – 05/12/16 Walking Routes During the Porz Ave roundabout closure (22-30 Oct) there will be a signed footpath diversion next to the roundabout to get to Wheatfield Road. Pedestrians can then cross on Poynters Road to get to Porz Ave. For noise reasons, the contractors say this work cannot just be done at night. L and D Hospital Access Via the A bus service from Houghton Regis to Stanton Road bus stop, but it is a 700m walk. Woodside Link Notices

By Alan Winter At last night's Town Partnership meeting, an update on the Kingsland* site was given by an officer from CBC. He  reported that currently the Council were exploring what outcomes they wanted from the scheme, what outcomes the Legacy project could deliver, and that it was still very early days as to what the final plans might look like. The officer was at pains to stress that there would NOT be 12-15 storey blocks of apartments on the site, as had recently been depicted in a recent Guardian newspaper article. The Legacy project was hoping to deliver many schemes across the country, he said, and the scenes in the article were more representative of central city centre locations. By about January 2017 there would be some public consultation on what local people would like to see happen at the site, he said. Following on from that, it might not be until the end of 2018 that any plans for a development might be unveiled, by which time Dunstable Leisure Centre'

In a Highways and Transport report to a Houghton Regis Council Committee* on  17 October 2016, it is mentioned that the A5120 Houghton Road was resurfaced, and that a resurfacing scheme for the High Street has been programmed for 2017/18. 33 potholes have been repaired since the middle of July, 9 more to be done. Bridgette, from their school crossing patrol team was nominated for a Pride of Houghton Award earlier this month. A new real bus time display is now on Houghton Road,  adjacent to Townsend farm Road. A new bus stop and flag are in Sundon Road after an accident destroyed the previous one. Improvements to a bus stop flag and cases had been made in Blackburn Road. A real time display was a possibility they are looking into for the shelter opposite Morrisons. But vandalism of bus shelters in Houghton Regis had continued, and 4 large glass panels had been replaced with perspex recently. Download the Autumn edition of The Central Bedfordshire Highways magazine. * Tow

Go Houghton - one of last year's winners Which venues will be receiving the ‘cheers’ at this year’s Best Bar None awards? That’s up to residents who are being asked to vote for their favourite licensed premises across Dunstable and Houghton Regis and Leighton-Linslade. Best Bar None is returning to Central Bedfordshire for a third year. The success of the inaugural awards covering Dunstable saw the scheme extended to Houghton Regis in 2015. And this year it also takes in venues across Leighton-Linslade. In total, 22 venues have been accredited to the scheme after being visited by an independent assessor. All of them are now in the running for two separate prizes – the overall award, approved by a panel of independent judges, and the People’s Vote prize, chosen by residents. The People’s Vote is now open and will run until Sunday, 27 November, with the winners announced at a ceremony two days later at the Grove Theatre, in Dunstable. The venues include last year’s ov

All Saints Churchyard wall - being partially rebuilt. Photo: A. D. Winter Work is currently being done to repair a leaning churchyard wall in Houghton Regis. All Saints Churchyard is  officially a closed one. This means that no further interments in new plots are permitted, and responsibility of its upkeep and maintenance has been passed to Houghton Regis Town Council. In February 2012 the Town Council were informed of a pronounced lean of All Saints churchyard wall at Bedford Road. Options to either totally rebuild the leaning section, put in restraining posts and framework from the rear, or buttresses to the front of the wall were all considered. The Bedford Road section of the churchyard wall was subsequently monitored for movement by an Architecture and Design company employed by the Town Council.  The churchyard wall was sagging outwards due to the pressure from the earth within. The Town Council then decided to budget for the work over the next few years. Towards the

ROADWORKS The A5 Roundabout at Thorn Road is now live, enabling entry from north and south into Thorn Road. Bedford Road will be closed from 10th – 21st October, Jnc Of Roslyn Way To Rear Of Old Red Lion Pub. Diversion shown above. The Porz Avenue roundabout will close 22-30 Oct. The constructors advise us that this will be a 24/7 closure both ways until completion due to the difference in road heights. Diversion above. Enquiries to CBC Woodside Link team at 0300 300 5289 or to their Facebook Page at   https://www.facebook.com/Woodside-Link-1574087456174748/ Bedford Road will again be closed from 31st October until the end of November for building new junctions, a roundabout at the junction of Bedford Road and Aylesbury Drive, and installation of all utility apparatus collaboratively. Work includes excavation in footway and carriageway to lay gas and electric mains (19 Sep - 18 Nov). Please continue to give the Old Red Lion your custom, even if you do have to drive around

Pride of Houghton Awards took place on Saturday evening at the Memorial Hall in Houghton Regis in front of a sell out audience. The Pride of Houghton Awards are organised by Houghton Regis Town Council to celebrate the achievements of truly remarkable people who make our town a better place. Nominated by the public, the winners are from all walks of life, of all ages. Their achievements are inspiring for these are just ordinary people, they are truly extraordinary. The winners were whittled down to a shortlist, from which the judging panel chose the award winners. The Individual Award was sponsored by Perfect Profiles and went to Lacey Ball. The Local Group Award was sponsored by D & I Family Butchers and went to YAWN (Young Adults With Needs). The Community Facilitator Award sponsored by the Town Council went to Irene Carpenter. The Carer Award was sponsored by Zebra Properties and went to David Coskeran. The Young Person Award was sponsore

Carers Eating Disorder Association Support Group. Meeting on every first Friday of each month. Get more details about our new support group at the DRC by emailing  here: cedaluton@gmail.com Does someone you care about have an eating disorder? Are you affected by their difficulties? Would you like to meet with others to share experiences and strategies? Come along to enjoy a cuppa, have a friendly chat and learn more about the support group. We share information and support each other in a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. For full details see the DRC website here: http://drcbeds.org/peer-support/eating-disorder-support-group-carers/

Dunstable's Asda store manager, David White, today presented a cheque for £200 to Houghton Regis Helpers. The store run a grants scheme whereby they allocate funds every three months to three worthy charities within their catchment area. When shoppers are served at the check-outs they are given green tokens which can be placed in collecting boxes at the front of the store. The charity with the most tokens receives a grant of £500, and the other two receive £200 each. For this month, through to the end of December, the tokens will be used to allocate funds that will be used locally for Multiple Sclerosis, British Red Cross, and Dunstable Street Pastors. More about the Asda scheme at https://www.asdafoundation.org/applying-for-funding More about Houghton Regis Helpers ...  http://www.houghtonregishelpers.co.uk/  or on facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/groups/316615075047027/

By Alan Winter Back in June 2015 the Town Council were asked to consider a range of new names for roads on the Taylor Wimpey  "Regent's Place" new estate off Bedford Road in Houghton Regis. As duck farming was once a very busy business in the Bidwell area, the theme of ducks was adopted and the councillors came up with a bunch of associated names. Subsequently, some of these names have now been approved by the developers. The first new homeowners are due to move in in October/November this year. Prices will range from around £260,00 for a two bedroom house to around £460,000 for a four bedroom house. Aylesbury Drive (the main thoroughfare), The Aylesbury duck is a breed of domesticated duck, bred mainly for its meat and appearance. It is a large duck with pure white plumage, a pink bill, orange legs and feet. ( Wikipedia ) Aylesbury duck. Source: Wikipedia. This item is in the public domain . Orpington Rise The Orpington or Buff Orpington Duck is a br