The new owners of a pub have maintained its reputation as the place to eat in the area while bringing in other improvements.

Graeme and Gary took over the Stag in Mentmore in November and since then have refurbished the restaurant and lounge bar and introduced a popular private dining area.

The business is committed to supporting local charities and currently is supporting a local non-profit organisation, Horses Helping People.

Graeme said: “We are holding a fundraising quiz event on September 27 and patron of Horses Helping people, Ken Bruce from BBC radio, will be quizmaster. We hope to raise over £2,000 for this local worthwhile concern.”

He added: “We love what we do at the Stag, it’s a real team effort with a group of passionate professionals working both in the kitchen and front-of-house to ensure people’s experience here is a memorable one.”

Gary is the executive chef, overseeing everything in the kitchen. He is classically trained and has worked in a number of leading restaurants in both London and the Home Counties.

Graeme left a career in the City five years ago and the Stag is the second restaurant he has owned.

Their aim is to deliver interesting menus using top quality produce, sourced as locally as possible. Being independent they are able to inject some flexibility into the menus and change the core menu every six weeks to ensure they are using seasonal produce while offering regular diners something new.

Crowdfunding events continue to be organised to help a young boy who lost both hands and feet to a deadly meningitis infection.

Kye Vincent, 10, underwent multiple amputations in April 2016 after contracting Meningococcal Septicaemia.

Friends and family are working hard to raise £11,000 to give Kye a bionic hand that promises to transform his life. So far, they have managed to raise £5,800 – just over half of the amount needed.

Last Thursday, the Ship Inn in Linslade hosted a ‘King Henry VIII burger challenge’ – serving up gargantuan sized burgers and challenging the public to eat them in record time.

Just four out of 20 people managed to finish the burgers with winners:

1st place – Jack Pacey who ate the challenge in 25 minutes and 17 seconds.

2nd place – Ben Waite in 26 minute 11 seconds.

3rd place – Alex Weston in 27 minutes and 9 seconds.

On Sunday, September 2, Abbotts View Alpaca Farm in Aston Abbots is hosting a special open day from 11am to 3.30pm, with £5 entry.

The open day will give the public the chance to meet the alpacas, with a selection of classic cars on display and a BBQ of free range rare meats.

Abbots View owner Joanne Dell said it is the only open day at the farm this year.

To donate towards Kye’s bionic hand, visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/bionichand.

An emotionally drained Leighton-Linslade mother says Central Beds Council has “played God” with her family’s lives, claiming she and her two children were unfairly made homeless.

Kerry Roblett is furious that social services has said placing her girls in foster care is the only help they can give while she tries to successfully bid for a property.

Kerry, 43, and her two daughters, Rhianna, 15, and Annamarie, 8, are staying on different friends’ sofas after they were evicted from their temporary council accommodation near Soulbury Road on August 15.

The mother-of-two, who has sought help from South West Beds MP Andrew Selous, claims that the council had offered her a permanent place to live in some flats on Plum Tree Lane, near town, but that it did not properly explain to her that declining the offer would make her homeless with the council no longer prepared to offer alternative properties – forcing her to bid with many others for whatever homes became available across the district.

She alleges: “Between 2006 and 2010 I lived in that block of flats and experienced various issues with other tenants - drugs, noise, loud music, bullying - and it led me to suffer severe depression and anxiety.

“So, this year, when CBC offered me the same flat block, I declined the offer - there was no way I could go back!

“I did not realise that my declining this flat would lead to me being ‘discharged’ from their duty of housing me. I only discovered this when I received their letter advising that I was being evicted on August 14.

“I appealed this, and thought the eviction date would therefore be postponed. However, on August 15 at midday there was this banging on the door! ‘Kerry, it’s Central Bedfordshire Council, can you let us in, we need to talk to you.’

“I was scared and let them in. My kids were home and I collapsed on the floor crying, saying ‘where am I to go?’”

When Kerry had moved away from the flats in Plum Tree Lane in 2010, she rented until her landlord sold the property earlier this year.

Unable to find anywhere else because other landlords “were not accepting tenants on benefits”, in February CBC placed her temporarily at Frances Court, Soulbury Road, where she was happy.

However, after she turned down their permanent offer of the Plum Tree Lane town flats and appealed the eviction, she claims she received a letter (before August 14) saying her appeal had been declined, although she alleges that the letter made no mention at all of when the impending eviction date would be, leading her to believe it had been postponed.

She claimed: “On the day of the eviction, we were advised to pack an overnight bag and go down to the Dunstable council offices.

“CBC then came in the room where me and my girls had been waiting for hours, only to be told they couldn’t do anything; it had gone too far – because I declined the offer – and I was no longer with CBC.

“All social services could do was place my children into foster care - not an option!

“I spent hours frantically ringing round my friends for help. My oldest daughter hasn’t coped at all, and it has made my youngest so clingy; she won’t leave my side.

“I need to take stronger medication and I wake up in the middle of the night with anxiety.”

The mobile hairdresser is also furious about the reasons why CBC turned down the appeal, which she made because of her past experiences at the flats and because her mental health could be affected if she went back. She claimed: “The council said I am not currently on strong enough medication - how much do they want me to take?

“They also said I had only ever logged one complaint when living there. But there were issues every day; what were the council really going to do!?”

A Central Beds Council spokeswoman, said: “When Ms Roblett approached the council as homeless in February we placed her in temporary accommodation.

“We offered her permanent accommodation at Plum Tree Lane which she refused. An independent review investigated Ms Roblett’s concerns and did not uphold them - agreeing that the property was both suitable and reasonable for her needs.

“We are still supporting Ms Roblett as she can still apply for social housing through the bidding system and we can support her if she finds private rented accommodation too.

“We will continue to support Ms Roblett to bid for properties but will not be allocating another, since Plum Tree Lane was turned down.”

However, Kerry still claims that the council told her she had been removed from their Housing Register and was not able to bid for properties.

She alleges that her bidding app didn’t work after she was evicted and that it came up with an ‘alert’ saying she was suspended.

The CBC spokeswoman added: “We apologise if Ms Roblett was informed she was off the bidding list. Ms Roblett is able to bid for available properties.”

After CBC told the LBO that Kerry was still on the Housing Register, the LBO contacted Kerry, who said the app was now working again, but claimed no-one from CBC had been in touch to tell her.

She argued: “The whole system has been so wrong. I’ve never taken drugs, and always paid my bills.

“I’m one of the good guys but they have played God with my family.”

Kerry and her daughters are still living on friends’ sofas and the mother claims the only bidding options are in Sandy, Flitwick, and Bedford - no good for her children’s schools come September and away from her hairdressing customers.

Mr Selous said: “When this case was raised with me I immediately raised it with Central Bedfordshire Council. I wish I had been able to provide advice earlier as I always advise constituents very strongly to accept the offer of a property made to them under homelessness legislation.

“Almost invariably, constituents are in a much worse situation if they turn a property down at this point. It can be possible to move from a property you are not happy with.

“If you don’t have a tenancy you don’t have that possibility though.”

Police are appealing for witnesses after two women were killed in a collision on the A5 on Saturday.

The incident took place on August 26 on the A5 between Little Brickhill and Hockliffe at about 5pm.

A collision occurred involving a red Peugeot 206 and a red Ford Fiesta.

The driver of the Peugeot, a 36-year-old woman, and the driver of the Ford, a 53 year-old were woman were both injured as a result of the collision and sadly both died at the scene.

The drivers’ next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers.

No arrests have been made.

Investigating officer, PC Reuben Hill said: “I would like to speak to anyone who witnessed this incident, or who saw either of the vehicles before the collision took place.

“I would also like to speak to anyone who was travelling on this part of the A5 shortly before the collision happened, or who has dashcam footage which could be relevant to our investigation.”

Anyone with any information is asked to call the Thames Valley Police non-emergency number on 101, quoting reference 43180261871, or make a report online.

Barriers at a restricted road in Leighton Buzzard have once again been bashed by heavy goods vehicles ignoring the restriction warnings.

For at least the second time this year, the width restriction barriers at Vandyke Road have been left severely damaged – leading to some calls for Central Beds Council to reconsider restrictions on the road.

Last Tuesday at midday saw another lorry stuck at the 6ft 6ins restriction outside Vandyke Upper School.

The lorry burst its tyre, ripped its plastic front end and pulled a bollard complete with concrete base out of the ground.

A Central Bedfordshire Council spokesman said: “Lorries are getting stuck on this road because they are ignoring the HGV restriction signage, which was put in place to protect pupils accessing the school.

“Our highways team will soon be conducting a full review on parking and the different routes available for vehicles travelling around Leighton Buzzard.

“Whilst we understand there are issues within the Leighton Buzzard area which we are keen to put right, we would ask drivers to adhere to the signage in place.”

In June, Cllr Ray Berry called on CBC to enforce the weight restrictions in Leighton Buzzard, which were being “flouted on a daily basis”.

Several accidents involving large vehicles have taken place in recent years.

In April, a bus ended up stuck in a ditch having approached the width restriction and attempted to reverse 300 yards to get back to the crossroads.

In February, a lorry also landed in a roadside ditch when the driver realised the vehicle wouldn’t fit through the two-metre gap and he was forced to perform a turning manouevre.

And in 2014, the LBO reported a lorry became wedged between the bollards when trying to get through the gap, blocking the road for five hours.

The latest public survey about shopping in Leighton Buzzard town centre has yielded mixed results.

This year’s ‘Town Centre User Survey’ received 1,213 responses, a rise of 524 since 2017.

Findings included people spending less than two hours in the town centre on average, despite an increase in footfall.

Around 58% of traders said their turnover has increased since 2017. Also 74% of people said their typical spend per visit was more than £10, which is above the national average.

Negatives included complaints about safety and anti-social behaviour, the retail mix of shops and problems associated with car parking.

One user said: “There are very few general clothes shops for women and no general clothes shops for men... As this is the case, I do all of my shopping in Milton Keynes.”

Another added: “It’s scary coming across groups on bikes who have no respect.”

Town Clerk Mark Saccoccio said the location of the town, surrounded by larger destinations, meant that many people used the high street for basics – explaining the two-hour average time spent in the town centre.

He added: “Judging from the positive level of responses, namely confidence in business turnover and increase in footfall, people recognise that Leighton Buzzard remains a great place to shop, eat and visit. It is not in the town council’s gift to dictate which shops open in the town. We can however strive to influence how attractive the town centre is. Annually, the town council invests a significant amount in floral displays as well as events in the high street.

“We service and maintain the multi-storey car park toilets which have recently been the subject of a £60,000 refurbishment programme. In addition, we remain committed to the market having invested in excess of £120,000 on the purchase of new gazebos and trader training for example.

“Through the Operation Dodford Agreement we have with Bedfordshire Police, we provide additional police patrols on market days for example.”

> What do you think about the findings? Email news@lbobserver.co.uk

A Leighton Buzzard couple’s diamond wedding anniversary was celebrated with classic Carry On capers, thanks to the Rock of Ages Choir!

David and Pearl Eagles have been members of the choir for years, and as their 60th milestone came up – the choir hatched a unique way to mark the occasion.

Taken on a mystery tour to Rutland, the Eagles donned a bowler hat and wedding veil and took part in a mock renewal of their vows, courtesy of a pretend vicar – with three members of the choir band providing a drumroll.

“It was great fun and such an unusual way to celebrate,” said Pearl. “The choir members had said they were going to take us out, but they wouldn’t tell us where!

“They all chipped in and hired a big coach to take us to Rutland Lakes. They took us on a boat all around the lake and then we went to a village called Wing – which everyone thought was the village near Leighton Buzzard.”

After arriving in Rutland on a coach, choir members were told they would soon afterwards be travelling to Wing for lunch. Unbeknownst to them, the ‘Wing’ in question was actually a village in Rutland, twinned with its namesake near Leighton Buzzard.

“People on the bus were wondering why we were going back to Wing so soon after arriving,” laughed choir member Frances Dell. “It was very funny when we arrived at the village a short time later and it all became clear!”

David and Pearl Eagles were married in Stonebridge, near Wembley, in 1958. They have two daughters, seven grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.

The Greensand Trust is counting the cost of a break-in at its Visitor Centre at Rushmere Park.

The intruders struck at the building within the Heath and Reach beauty spot in the early hours of Tuesday morning (August 28), but the Trust has not commented on what damage was done or what may have been taken, as the incident is subject to an ongoing police investigation.

A spokesman for the environmental charity said: “The Trust regrets to report a break-in took place at the Visitor Centre of Rushmere Country Park in the early hours of Tuesday morning which is now the subject of a police investigation.

“As a result the Tree Tops Café was closed on Tuesday 28 August while police investigators were on site but has since re-opened for business.”

Chief Executive Gill Welham added: “This is a highly regrettable incident as Rushmere Country Park is run on a not-for-profit basis by charity the Greensand Trust with proceeds from the café going towards the running the park. We thank the public for their support and would urge anyone with any relevant information to contact the police.”

Anyone willing to assist Rushmere Country Park can donate via our website: https://www.greensandtrust.org/Appeal/donate

A Beds Police spokesman said “We were called at around 3am on Tuesday to reports of a break in at the visitors centre in Rushmere Country Park.

“The offenders had gained entry to the property and searched it, as well as accessing a safe.”

Anyone with any information is asked to contact us on 101, quoting reference 26 of Tuesday (28 August).

A Leighton Buzzard cake company that opened in 2006 has been named as one of the top 100 small businesses by Small Business Saturday UK.

La Belle Cake Company, in North Street, creates award winning bespoke wedding and celebration cakes with clients including celebrities and even royalty. They also run La Belle Academy which offers business coaching to other cake makers looking to set up, or get ahead in their business.

Owner Michelle Shulman, said: “Being selected for Small Biz 100 gives us a really fantastic opportunity to raise La Belle’s profile. We can tell more people about our cakes and our new academy – helping other small cake businesses to get ahead.

“I was absolutely delighted that we were chosen as one of this year’s Small Biz 100. I am very proud of my business and have worked incredibly hard to make it what it is today and a little bit of recognition is always nice.”

The list was created by Small Business Saturday UK, a non-political, non-commercial campaign that seeks to foster support for small businesses from within their communities, both on Saturdays and beyond.

“In the last five years the Small Biz 100 have not only received exposure on Small Business Saturday’s social media channels and in the local and national press, but also joined the Small Business Saturday team in London at receptions in both Downing Street and The Treasury Drum with the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Each business listed is promoted one day each leading up to Small Business Saturday on December 1 2018. The initiative started in 2010 in the US and has generated a lot of custom for small businesses; the campaign is now in its sixth year in the UK.

For more information about La Belle Cake Company or the new academy contact; 70a North Street, Leighton Buzzard. 01525 838343, www.labellecakecompany.co.uk

Buzzard Scooter Club in Leighton Buzzard raised nearly £3,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support at a music and scooter event.

The scooter club organised the all day event on Saturday, August 18, at Wing Sports and Social Club to raise money for the charity that provides specialist health care, and support to people affected by cancer.

There were live bands and DJs playing from midday till midnight, an afternoon scooter show, a raffle and an auction.

Bruce Middleweek, of Buzzard Scooter Club, said: “It was a brilliant day, everyone really enjoyed it.

“All the raffle prizes were donated by friends and people in the scooter community as well as Tesco, Morrison and Wing Sports and Social Club. We had two raffles, the afternoon raffles had 24 prizes and there 30 prizes in the evening one.

“We also had four items to auction off to help a raise a bit more cash and received a £400 donation from the DJs.

“The total amount raised for Macmillan Cancer Support is £2905.68.

“Buzzard Scooter Club would like to thank everybody, including all the bands, DJs, singers and also Wing Sports and Social Club who were very accommodating by allowing us to hold the event at their venue.”

Bedfordshire Police is appealing for the public’s help to find a man wanted in connection with a serious incident in Leighton Buzzard.

Officers want to speak to Liam Loughran, 21, from Hemel Hempstead, in connection with the incident, in which a vehicle was driven at door staff outside The Lancer public house at approximately 2am on Sunday, August 5.

Officers are continuing to investigate the incident, and would like to trace Liam.

Detective Constable Tracey Joyce, investigating, said: “We’re appealing for anyone who may know of his whereabouts, or who has seen him, to get in touch with us.”

Anyone who sees Liam is urged not to approach him, but is asked to contact police on 101 quoting reference 40/16265/18, or by using Bedfordshire Police’s online reporting tool.

Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

As children across the country prepare to go back to school, a lively mob of meerkats at Woburn Safari Park also headed to the classroom for life skills lessons.

Thanks to the Animal Encounters keepers in the Desert Springs enclosure, the mob’s first day started with a hearty ‘back to school’ breakfast of mealworms and pellets rich in nutrients, vitamins and minerals keeping them happy, healthy and fuelled up ready for a fun day of learning.

The alpha meerkats, 5-year old female Sue and 8-year old male Spence, took charge of the ruler-tall students and introduced them to a new curriculum of the three Fs – food, foes and family, swapping out the traditional three Rs of reading writing and arithmetic!

The curious pupils were shown colourful books of pesky predators not to get eaten by in the wild such as reptiles, snakes, birds of prey and jackals. Meerkats make distinct noises to teach and warn their young and as the alpha duo had a white board and magnetic blackboard at their disposal it was a lively class.

Once the bell rang for break time the mob got to enjoy plenty of enrichment in their playground enclosure as keepers provided novelty school buses for them to explore. The species is naturally hierarchical, observant and curious, so the adorable pupils all got gold stars for their enthusiasm and good behaviour at the end of the day.

Lianne Paine, deputy head of section, animal encounters said: “Enrichment is at the heart of what we do so we regularly come up with new ways to keep our animals displaying natural behaviours. The idea came about as it’s the end of the school holidays and children will be heading back to school in September. As well as hiding food to encourage natural foraging we decided it was about time that Sue and Spence taught the others the ropes. It was fantastic to see as they loved playing with the toys and sniffing out their breakfast!”

Woburn is home to a 10-strong mob of meerkats who live alongside yellow mongoose and African crested porcupine in Desert Springs. Complete with termite mounds, desert sands and grasses, the enclosure has been specially designed to closely mimic their wild African habitat and encourage natural foraging, burrowing and breeding behaviours.

Families can meet the meerkats up-close on a special VIP ‘Desert Springs Encounter’. Under the supervision of a guide, guests can feed the meerkats their favourite insects and become a student themselves, learning first-hand about the mob and their fascinating behaviour.

Houghton Regis based Whitbread PLC is planning to sell Costa Coffee to The Coca-Cola Company for £3.9 billion.

The move was unanimously agreed by the Whitbread Board to be in the best interests of shareholders

It will allow Whitbread to reduce its financial indebtedness and make a contribution to the pension fund, which will both provide room for further expansion of Premier Inn in the UK and Germany

The Transaction is conditional upon agreement by Whitbread’s shareholders and various other approvals, including anti-trust approvals, and is expected to complete in the first half of 2019

Whitbread will now focus on the growth opportunities for its leading hotel business, Premier Inn, in the UK and Germany.

Alison Brittain, Whitbread Chief Executive, said: “This transaction is great news for shareholders as it recognises the strategic value we have developed in the Costa brand and its international growth potential and accelerates the realisation of value for shareholders in cash.

The sale of Costa to Coca-Cola is another landmark in the 276-year history of Whitbread. Whitbread acquired Costa in 1995, for £19 million when it had only 39 shops and successfully grew the business to be the UK’s favourite and largest coffee shop company.

James Quincey, Coca-Cola President & CEO, said: “Costa gives Coca-Cola new capabilities and expertise in coffee, and our system can create opportunities to grow the Costa brand worldwide. Hot beverages is one of the few remaining segments of the total beverage landscape where Coca-Cola does not have a global brand. Costa gives us access to this market through a strong coffee platform. I’d like to welcome the team to Coca-Cola and look forward to working with them.”

Leighton Buzzard and Linslade would probably be better off in the Thames Valley policing area in the fight against crime, it’s been claimed.

“We pay a lot in council tax and we want to make sure we get our policing,” said Conservative Leighton Buzzard South Central Bedfordshire councillor Amanda Dodwell at a public meeting in the town.

“As it stands now we would probably get better policing in Thames Valley because there is a higher funding rate there.

“If we were a small village or town there, we would do better,” she told last night’s (Thursday 30th) meeting called by the Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner Kathryn Holloway.

Councillor Dodwell, who also serves on the town council, was quick to point out “how good the local community policing team is and what a fantastic job they do for the local area”.

But she asked the police panel: “When 40 per cent of police funding is spent in Luton, how do we ensure proper attention is given to rural areas and our market towns, such as Leighton Buzzard, Dunstable and Houghton Regis?

“Over the last five years crime in Leighton Buzzard has gone up, and crime in Houghton Regis and Dunstable is now higher than it is Luton,” she added.

“And you had a very angry meeting there last week, so I am asking on behalf of Central Bedfordshire residents are we really getting our fair share of resources?”

Bedfordshire Police Deputy Chief Constable Garry Forsyth replied: “Crime five years ago in Leighton Buzzard averaged about four crimes per day.

“Three years ago it averaged about six crimes a day, one year ago it was six a day. Now it’s currently about seven crimes per day,” he said.

“There is a balance for us where we have to place our operational asset against the threat risk we’re presented with.

“Yes, 40 per cent of our policing asset is in Luton, which goes for the fact that I’ve had 14 firearm discharges there, as well as 11 serious crimes and threatened criminality.

“That’s more than per head of population in London. There are people coming to serious harm on a daily basis there.

“That’s absolutely not to say we neglect the needs of Leighton Buzzard.

“We are trying to and we are populating the Leighton Buzzard community teams with more officers than it has ever had.

“And there’s the rural team which is the biggest in eastern England,” he added.

“We continue to make sure we have a community response from all the relevant areas, and that’s augmented by specialist patrols as well.

“I know it’s not as much as you would like. It’s not as much as I would like to give you.

“I have to make difficult choices which are based on the threat risk we face on a daily basis.”

Residents questioned what is considered to be an offence if there are only six or seven crimes a day in the town.

Local concerns about policing finishing in the locality towards the end of the evening were addressed by the police and crime commissioner.

“There’s a perception in this town that community policing ends at 10pm,” she said, which provoked a short burst of heckling suggesting that’s what residents had been told at a previous meeting.

“If I tell you the team that’s all around me have been working until 3am recently on targeted activity around thefts from vans,” she told the meeting at the Mentmore Road Pavilion.

“And you have a response (team) that starts at 10pm, it is absolutely incorrect to believe that policing finishes at 10pm in this town.

“Anyone who knows me knows that I have come here because I am not the slightest bit scared to look into the whites of the eyes of people.

“I could come here and I could promise you the earth, and I would be lying,” she said.

“The fact is that we have one of the lowest budgets in policing and one of the most overstretched front lines.

“But those of you who read the Sunday Telegraph last week will see policing as a whole is retreating away from communities.

“And Bedfordshire Police, with me as PCC, is walking towards them as fast as we can,” she added.

“That’s why you have a community hub, that is the reality, and it’s bucking the trend.”

> Police tell Leighton Buzzard crime meeting ‘We are not afraid of travellers’. Click here

> What’s your view on the evening and the issues raised in this article? Email news@lbobserver.co.uk

Leighton Buzzard’s Wally Randall was honoured to be asked to turn on the town’s Christmas lights last year.

In recent times Christmas festival organisers have sourced a well-known celebrity to launch the three-day event at the Friday night lights switch-on and fireworks display.

But in 2017 a more local approach was adopted when Britain’s oldest poppy seller, 102-year-old Wally, was approached to be guest of honour at the ceremony.

And with the LBO, in conjunction with LB First and Leighton-Linslade Town Council, looking for another worthy community champion to perform the task on Friday, November 30, Wally spoke to the LBO about last year’s experience.

He said: “It was an honour, and it was nice to be remembered for my public service.

“There were a group of us all to do it together, the MP Andrew Selous, the [former] Mayor Syed Rahman, and the carnival princesses, all pressing the button. It was nice because my granddaughter took me down and there was quite a crowd; they were very receptive, clapping for us!”

Wally will be celebrating his 103rd birthday on September 8, and hopes to attend this year’s light switch on with his granddaughter, Emma.

LBO readers are now invited to send us their nominations for a worthy local VIP to perform the 2018 switch-on.

Email news@lbobserver.co.uk detailing your own name/email address/telephone number, who your local VIP is, and why they deserve to turn on the lights. Alternatively send us the form in this week’s LBO.

Once we have collated all the nominations a shortlist will be drawn up and readers will have the chance to vote on who should get the honour of turning on the lights.

Gennaro Borrelli, chairman of independent traders’ group LB First, said: “After the success we had when Wally Randall turned on the lights last year, we decided it would be a great idea if we asked the public to put forward their community champions through the LBO for the 2018 event.”

Pugs (and their owners) are joining forces to break a Guinness World Record

On September 9 five regional pug groups will gather to organise the largest ever pug walk.

Their aim is to break a Guinness World Record and raise funds and awareness of the number of pugs being surrendered to Pug Dog Welfare and Rescue Association.

The event will take place at 11am at Hitchin Priory on Tilehouse Street, Hitchin, and will be run and organised by North Herts Pugs, Bedford Borough Pug Group, Bucks Pugs, Cambridge Pugs and Northants Pug Group.

Participants can register their interest on any of the groups’ Facebook pages and pay a £5 donation to be part of this fantastic event.

Limited edition anniversary T-shirts and sweatshirts can be purchased ahead of the event and anniversary dog leads on the day at the event.

Bedfordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Kathyrn Holloway made a passionate defence of her position when one of the questions at a public meeting in Leighton Buzzard was: ‘Why do we need a PCC?’

Turning to her record since becoming PCC, Mrs Holloway said: “If you didn’t have a PCC, you wouldn’t have someone who’s taking the argument to government.

“So you’ve already got £2.98m coming to Bedfordshire Police because I’m taking the argument (to government) about local funding.

“You wouldn’t have someone to take on the police watchdog, the HMIC. That was consistently and unfairly, and in an unbalanced way, reporting on and investigating Bedfordshire Police.

“Why would the police ever be invested in, in this county, if it looked as if we had a particular performance many aspects of which were plain wrong in the way the HMIC had reported on it?” she asked.

“The service for victims has been transformed. With the Signpost hub, in only two months since it started on April 1st, it assisted more victims than the previous outsource service did in the entire previous year.

“Those things have started with me and my office,” she explained. “It’s a completely different role to the old police authority.

“I am obliged to make sure you have quality services. Before I came in money haemorrhaged out of that office.

“And nobody saw effectively to have any kind of audit over what were the outcomes for people who were going through as service users,” she said.

“Ernst and Young are doing that for me this year. They are in weekly contact with my office.

“We want to ensure they’re spending your money on what they pitched to me to provide, and they’re providing the services we commissioned.

“That and the work we’re doing around knife crime, making the local authorities face up to their responsibilities, not taking no for an answer, making them come to the table.

And frankly, in public, naming and shaming those that weren’t prepared to address gangs and knife carrying issues,” she added. “That’s why you have a PCC.”

Bedfordshire Police Deputy Chief Constable Garry Forsyth backed up the PCC during the meeting at Mentmore Road Pavilion on Thursday (August 30).

“I’ve worked as chief officer for eight years in three different forces,” he said. “I have worked under five PCCs.

“There are some frailties with the PCC system and some bits of it I don’t like.

“But I guarantee you a couple of things. You wouldn’t have got 17 members of a police authority here today at any point in its existence.

“The scrutiny she puts to the police service and the way she holds us to account is far more than anything I have experienced at a police authority.

“The other point around your PCC, I know she cares deeply about this place and something I find really refreshing is that she’s really not that interested in politics.

“She is more interested in what we’re doing to provide a service for the public.”

When a resident suggested Central Bedfordshire councillor Amanda Dodwell didn’t agree with her, the PCC replied: “You can’t please all of the people all of the time.

“Councillor Dodwell sat on the police and crime panel and had an exemplary opportunity to see first hand exactly what we’re providing.”

Offered the chance to respond, Conservative Leighton Buzzard South councillor Dodwell said: “I feel it’s a very expensive office and it’s brought politics into policing.

“Prior to having a PCC, we had a police authority which brought all different political persuasions together and other experts to look at the policing issue across the county.

“It was a far more cost effective way for delivering accountability with the public.”

The PCC said: “Not only that I took a £45,000 pay cut to take this job in terms of another offer that I had at the time, I did this because I want to perform a role in public service to make a difference.

“I am not the slightest bit interested in a Parliamentary seat into the future.

“I am not doing this for ego, and I am certainly not doing this for politics.”

A man has died following a collision in Leighton Buzzard on Friday (August 31).

Officers were called to reports of a collision between a pedestrian and a car in Leighton Road at around 10.30pm.

Emergency services attended the scene, but sadly the pedestrian died as a result of his injuries, after being conveyed to Addenbrooke’s Hospital.

An 18-year-old man from Leighton Buzzard has been arrested in connection with this incident and has since been released under investigation.

A man who heard the collision and helped at the scene, said: “My wife and I had left the kebab shop and heard a loud bang, we looked over and saw a man lying on the ground.

“I had recently done a first aid course so I ran over to see if I could help, he had hit his head off the windscreen.

“I gave him first aid while someone rang the ambulance, I tried to get a response from him but couldn’t, but he was breathing.

“When the paramedics and ambulance arrived I helped where I could and they took him to hospital.”

Sergeant James Thorne, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Roads Policing Unit, said: “It is always a tragedy when someone loses their life on our roads and our thoughts are with the victim’s family and friends.

“If anyone has any information relating to this incident, then I would urge them to come forward.”

People can report any information to the force through our online reporting centre or on 101, quoting reference 435 of 31 August.

A former Bedfordshire Police officer who accessed police systems to check on a case involving his relative has been found to have committed gross misconduct.

Former PC David Holmes searched for information on an ongoing case on 15 April 2013 and 7 December the same year. There was no evidence that he passed the information onto a third party.

An investigation was carried out by the Beds, Cambs and Herts professional standards department and as a result a special case hearing for gross misconduct was heard at Police HQ in Kempston on Thursday, August 30.

Chief Constable Jon Boutcher found that PC Holmes’ conduct amounted to gross misconduct for confidentiality and discreditable conduct. The sanction was deemed to be a final written warning had he been a serving officer – he resigned in April.

Mr Boutcher said: “It is a personal frustration that former PC Holmes accessed this material some five years ago.

“I am inherently aware of the trust put in police to hold such data and of the negative impact such a misuse of police systems has on the trust that we rely on from our communities.”

Retroplay is coming to Leighton Buzzard this weekend and organisers predict it will be bigger and better than last year.

The movie, gaming and comic festival will be back at Brooklands Middle School on Sunday, September 9, with the money raised being donated to Kids Out.

The charity, based in Leighton Buzzard, aims to give children positive experiences to support them in the future.

This year, as well as meeting their favourite superheroes, visitors will have the chance see a number of iconic vehicles on display including KITT and the Back to the Future Delorean.

Retroplay is organised by two local businesses, The Retro Centre and Digi-Steve Photography.

Advance tickets are £5, or £15 for a family ticket, under 5’s go free, tickets will be more expensive on the day. To book a ticket visit: www.retroplayfestival.com.