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Leighton Buzzard News

The latest Leighton Buzzard news: planning decisions, council and crime updates, business and community stories, each linked back to its official source.

Top story Dunstable's D-Day weather forecasters remembered in Parliament Alex Mayer's Parliament tribute honours the Dunstable Met Office staff whose forecast helped delay D-Day by a full day. Updated November 2026. · 3 min read

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Health Bedfordshire mental health help by text: SOS to 80899 Text SOS to 80899 or WhatsApp 0800 884 0655 for free, confidential NHS-funded support at any hour. The new service is open to all ages across Bedfordshire. · 6 min read Health Clipstone Park GP rooms in doubt as £1.8m hall waits The NHS may not fund even three GP rooms at Clipstone Park. A £1.8m community hall has no decision and no timescale, a council report for 9 November says. · 5 min read Council tax Council Tax Support cut stays for 2027, council proposes No change to Council Tax Support in 2027/28: 10,284 working-age households keep a 75% maximum discount, with the same income bands. Councillors look at it on 3 November. · 5 min read Leighton Buzzard Leighton Buzzard TV interference: free fix, 0808 13 13 800 Mobile mast upgrades in Leighton Buzzard may disrupt Freeview and other aerial TV. Restore TV sends a free filter and can arrange an engineer if that fails. · 3 min read Politics Budget 2026: £100 energy payment for 40,000 homes, MP says About 40,000 homes in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard qualify for a £100 energy payment in 2027, Alex Mayer MP says. What else is in the Budget, and when. · 6 min read House Prices Central Beds house prices: up 0.1%, slowest in two years The average Central Bedfordshire home was £355,263 in August, up just 0.1% in a year: the weakest growth since July 2024. Detached homes and flats both fell. · 4 min read Fire Service Fire service plan: Leighton Buzzard crews' 771 medical calls Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue's draft five-year plan is open for comment until 15 January. It names no change at Lake Street; its data shows how busy crews are. · 4 min read Health 750,000 L&D and Bedford patient records now digital More than 750,000 adult patient records at the L&D and Bedford Hospital are now digital, saving the trust about £2m a year, plus £30,000 a month on storage. · 2 min read Children Central Bedfordshire 9th of 153 for children, but care lags Central Bedfordshire is joint ninth of 153 areas in the Children's Commissioner's Childhood Lottery. Its children in care fare worst in the region on four measures. · 4 min read Jobs Central Bedfordshire claimants hit 5,150, a four-year high 5,150 people in Central Bedfordshire claimed unemployment benefits in September, the most since November 2021. Under-25 claims rose 12% in a year. · 3 min read Care homes Leighton Buzzard care home mobility project ends 6 November Elm Lodge residents in Leighton Buzzard have spent eight weeks on seated SHUFFLER exercise. Bedfordshire Care Group reviews the results on 6 November. · 2 min read Schools Oak Bank School Leighton Buzzard at 50: MP unveils plaque Oak Bank School on Sandy Lane has marked 50 years since 1976. MP Alex Mayer unveiled a plaque and 10 staff with 20 years' service each came back for tea. · 3 min read Planning Linslade Tree Order: Every Garden on The Martins Covered A blanket tree order now covers every garden on The Martins Drive and Bossington Lane in Linslade, back gardens included. Councillors decide on 21 October whether it stays. · 4 min read Crime Leighton Buzzard shoplifting up 58% as other crime falls Police recorded 325 shoplifting crimes within a mile of Leighton Buzzard town centre in the year to August, up from 206. Violence and antisocial behaviour fell. · 4 min read Mead Open Farm Mead Open Farm's Adult Farm Nights in national award final Mead Open Farm's 18+ Adult Farm Nights is one of four finalists for Best Event at the 2027 NFAN Awards. The next one, Bad Santa, is on 12 December at £37.95. · 2 min read SEND Ivel Valley School, Biggleswade: 330 places in £42m plan Central Bedfordshire has approved a £42.2m expansion of Biggleswade's Ivel Valley special school to 330 places, with 20 new classrooms. No start date is set. · 3 min read Town centre Leighton Buzzard market survey open until 31 October The town council wants your view on its five-year market plan by 31 October. The survey takes about five minutes. Tuesday is the day it most wants to change. · 4 min read Leighton Buzzard Railway Leighton Buzzard Steam Gala: Woto in, first train 9.50am Woto, a Bagnall saddle tank, replaces Cegin at the 24 and 25 October gala. First train 9.50am both days; day rovers £26.50 adult, £17.50 child on the day. · 6 min read SEND Central Bedfordshire EHC plans: 1,466 updates outstanding 1,466 amended EHC plans were outstanding on 4 September. New plans are 74% on time, but the council needs 441 amendments a month and managed 137 in August. · 5 min read Planning Leighton Buzzard Local Plan: 25,000 homes, stations first The draft plan to 2050 has about 25,000 homes to place and prefers towns with stations and services. Leighton Buzzard fits every test. Comments open 30 Nov. · 6 min read Parking Southcourt, Linslade parking: 7-day limits approved Seven-day parking limits for Southcourt Road and Avenue in Linslade were approved on 1 October, to be actioned from 16 October. Church Avenue gets a site visit. · 7 min read Planning Central Bedfordshire planning call-ins end on 31 October From 31 October a ward councillor can no longer force a planning application to a public committee. Central Bedfordshire votes on the rule change on Thursday. · 6 min read Housing Leighton Buzzard HMOs: 3 towns hold 75% of the total Leighton Buzzard is one of three towns holding 75% of Central Bedfordshire's HMOs, a motion says. Councillors debate planning curbs on Thursday. · 5 min read House Prices Central Beds house prices: £1,662 below the March record The average Central Bedfordshire home hit £356,758 in July, up 1.2% in a year but still below March's record. Flats are the only type losing value, down £2,874. · 7 min read Leighton Buzzard Leighton Buzzard Railway: steam back next Sunday, it says Today's trains are diesel again and the railway now blames track damage at Munday's Hill as well as dry weather. Its own table puts steam back on 27 September. · 7 min read Transport Leighton Buzzard blue badges: Full Council votes 26 to 5 Councillors voted 26 to 5 to send the blue badge refusal back to the executive. Two executive members voted against; it returns on 6 October. · 6 min read Sport Leighton Buzzard youth football season delayed to October Two summers of no rain left Astral Park and Pages Field unsafe, so the season starts in October. Youth demand is up 50% and a borehole would cost £60,000. · 5 min read Roads Central Bedfordshire: three fatal crashes in ten days Police want dash-cam footage after three single-vehicle deaths at Woburn, near Upper Caldecote and on the A1, between 4 and 13 September. · 4 min read Leisure Leighton Buzzard leisure centre: 57,000 visits in a month The new £33.9m centre took 57,000 visits in July, up 83% on the old one, and 28,774 swims in August. The council's own figures, and the one it leaves out. · 5 min read Town centre Leighton Buzzard market: plan to revive Tuesday, vote 14 Sep A five-year plan to rescue the Tuesday market goes to councillors on Monday. 85% of traders now work Saturdays only, and 45% of shoppers are not regulars. · 7 min read Transport Central Beds transport plan: have your say by 20 September Six Leighton-Linslade path and cycle schemes sit in the plan's unfunded appendix. Central Bedfordshire's transport plan to 2040 is open until 20 September. · 5 min read Schools School transport failures go to Central Beds scrutiny 10 Sep Families who applied on time started term with no transport, a Biggleswade councillor says. The council's scrutiny committee takes the item on Thursday. · 5 min read Parking Leighton Buzzard car park lift out 9 months, scrutiny 10 Sep The West Street multi-storey lift has been out since December 2025. A councillor has forced it onto the scrutiny agenda for 10 September. No repair date exists. · 7 min read Community safety Leighton Buzzard car meets ban approved, signs due 2027 The council approved a car meets and nuisance driving ban for Leighton Buzzard and all Central Bedfordshire on 6 October. Signs are due spring 2027. · 6 min read Transport Leighton Buzzard blue badges: council votes tonight Councillors vote tonight on restoring organisational blue badges to Buzzer Buses. The executive refused in June, saying government rules bar them. · 8 min read Politics Central Bedfordshire mayor: leader backs it, wants a vote Cllr Adam Zerny's motion tonight backs an elected mayor over an Ox-Cam region and asks for a public vote. The government's own statement offers no referendum. · 5 min read What's On Leighton Buzzard Proms in the Park 2026: free, 12 September Free entry, films from 12pm, live music from 7pm and fireworks at Parson's Close on Saturday 12 September. Plus the town car park that shuts at 7pm. · 3 min read Transport Leighton Buzzard EV event: free test drives on 2 October Free drop-in on Market Square, Friday 2 October, 10am to 3pm: EV test drives, e-bikes and heat pump advice. Plus what the new DfT charger figures show. · 5 min read Leighton Buzzard Greenfields Leighton Buzzard marks 10 years with mayor visit Residents threw a summer barbecue for the over-55s community's 10th year, joined by Town Mayor Kevin Pughe and MP Alex Mayer. More follows in November. · 3 min read Planning Sandy solar farm: officers back 7MW plan, decided today Officers back a 7MW solar farm north of the A603 at Sandy, four years after it was lodged. Also decided today: 17 homes at Langford, decking at a Dunstable pub. · 7 min read Parks Leighton Buzzard parks: 6 Green Flags, most in the district Six Leighton-Linslade parks hold a 2026 Green Flag, more than any other council in the district. The full list, checked against Keep Britain Tidy's register. · 4 min read Leighton Buzzard Leighton Buzzard GCSE results 2026: Cedars' best ever Cedars Upper School reports its best ever GCSE results. Across Central Bedfordshire, Attainment 8 rose to 44.5 but grade 4 passes in English and maths fell to 63.3%. · 6 min read Leighton Buzzard Leighton Buzzard Railway: no steam this bank holiday Dry weather has put every Leighton Buzzard Railway train on diesel until further notice. Steam is booked back from 6 September, and the gala is 24 and 25 October. · 5 min read House Prices Central Beds June house prices revised down to £354,690 Land Registry has revised June down: the Central Bedfordshire average is now £354,690, £1,763 less than first published, and the annual rise 2.4% not 2.9%. · 5 min read Business Henlow stadium company wound up owing £2.28m Henlow Racing Limited's statement of affairs lists a £2,276,092 shortfall: £1m to HMRC, £142,309 to six staff, £94,744 to the greyhound regulator. · 4 min read Planning Leighton Buzzard Local Plan sites: comments close 17 Aug 51 sites around Leighton-Linslade are open for comment until Monday 17 August, including 149 hectares west of Linslade and 294 at Heath and Reach. Where they are, how to respond. · 6 min read Community Chelsea Flower Show gold garden opens in Leighton Buzzard The Children's Society Garden, a Chelsea 2026 gold medal winner, has been rebuilt at Leighton Buzzard Youth Centre as a permanent wellbeing space for young people. · 2 min read Health Evergreen Ampthill closure plan: consultation open to 2 Nov Central Bedfordshire proposes closing the 6-bed Evergreen unit in Ampthill and running all short-stay reablement beds from Houghton Regis. Comments close 2 November. · 2 min read