Campaigners have hit out at attempts to market Leighton Buzzard’s South Side regeneration scheme which they say have been “shrouded in secrecy”.

Residents Victoria Harvey and Colin Ashby each submitted Freedom of Information Act requests seeking to prise more information out of the Central Beds Council regarding its consultant GVA’s approaches to major retailers who might jump on board with the regeneration project.

In December the LBO revealed how it was back to the drawing board for the scheme, after Central Beds Council disclosed GVA had found no retailers were interested in the district to be built over the area of Park Street and Cattle Market, plans for which were first drawn up by CBC in 2012.

At the time a summary of the GVA report was revealed and Ms Harvey said it was “scandalous” that the full report had not been made public. This led CBC to promise the detailed report would be made available soon, once commercial sensitive information had been addressed.

Last week at the Community Planning Event for Leighton Buzzard, the LBO understands the full report was handed out to few individuals, and this afternoon CBC confirmed to the LBO that an online version is available at http://www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/Images/leighton-intelligence-report_tcm3-21441.pdf

Ms Harvey and Mr Ashby were left unimpressed by the information gleaned from their FoI requests.

In them they asked for more detail on the 18 retailers that were approached and asked if they only sold clothes or could be described as high street fashion outlets.

The council said ten of 18 “mostly sell clothes”, that “not all the 18 retailers could be described as high street fashion” and that those approached were aware of the Grovebury Road retail parks in the pipeline.

Apart from these ten, a further breakdown of the other firms stated that two were food retailers, two fell into the home category, one sold jewellery, one was a health business, one was sports and one was “other”.

CBC also revealed: “We put forward a list of retailers that are well-known high street retailers and also, suggested by the community. GVA further informed targeted approach through market intelligence based on locality, area profile and project details. GVA utilised their networks and expertise in gauging interest in occupying space at Land South of High Street from these retailers.”

Campaigners have been desperate to keep retail as the key focus of the regeneration plans and have been putting the pressure on Central Beds Council as they fear the emphasis has shifted away from retail to building housing, a hotel and offices on the site.

Ms Harvey said: “Half the shops they did research on were completely irrelevant to what people wanted.

“People were expecting clothes shops/ high street fashion in land south of the High Street – yet the market intelligence report asked 18 retailers of which nearly half did not sell clothes at all, and the rest only mostly sold clothes. Most fashion stores like H&M and Jigsaw would not be described as ‘mostly sell clothes’.

“It is odd that the retailers asked were aware of the two out of town retail parks, as either they were told about them by GVA or they were type of stores already interested in them.”

Ms Harvey added: “This is a very misleading report from CBC shrouded in secrecy, that has been used by CBC to give the impression that clothing stores were not interested in the town centre of Leighton Buzzard despite the recent opening of M&Co.

“It seems from the FoI that retailers asked by the consultants commissioned by CBC were not the type of high street fashion and clothes shops that we were told were planned for the south side of the High Street.”

When addressing Leighton-Linslade Town Council’s partnership committee on December 1 last year, CBC regeneration manager Marc Howard said at the time: “For Land South of the High Street, GVA carried out a soft market testing exercise. They contacted a range of retailers and leisure providers to find out if there’s any interest in taking space Land South of High Street.

“The outcome was three-fold. Firstly, there is healthy demand from the leisure sector, mid to high range restaurants, and some entertainment providers such as a small cinema and a hotel.

“With the retail market, things are very challenging. So while they were interested in Leighton Buzzard, Land South of High Street doesn’t offer what they are looking for.”

The partnership committee meets again on Thursday, February 16, and a report due to go before that meeting from Mr Howard states: “Central Bedfordshire is currently assessing the potential of securing a couple of land parcels to reduce the development risk and gain further control of this area for a regeneration project. We are also currently assessing how this project can proceed over the next five years. More details will be provided in due course.”

CBC’s website also states: “The development proposal will set out what development can go forward; this includes detail about units, urban design, transport links, types of businesses (based on the market study), how we will deliver it and a timetable. We are intending to publish this development proposal in winter 2016/2017.”

Stargazers will be treated to three astronomical events, when a lunar eclipse, Snow moon and New Year comet will all appear on the same night.

The events will all coincide, a rare occurrence, tonight, Friday February 10.

Seeing the triple celestial event will depend on local cloud cover.

Snow moon

February’s full moon is named the Snow moon, because in the US this is traditionally the snowiest time of year.

Penumbral lunar eclipse

This year’s Snow moon will coincide with a penumbral lunar eclipse, so that it is almost completely submerged in shade as the Earth comes between the sun and the moon.

A penumbral eclipse is when the moon crosses a peripheral region of the Earth’s shadow. Usually a faint shadow will form on the moon’s surface, and the moon will appear less bright. However February’s penumbral eclipse is unusual, because most of the moon’s face will cross the Earth’s shadow, making it appear much darker.

The best time to view the event will be mid-eclipse at 12.45am, though the eclipse will begin at 10.34pm on Friday and end at 2.53am on Saturday morning.

New Year comet

The New Year comet has been visible around the world since December, but on Friday it will make its closest approach to Earth, reaching 7.4 million miles from Earth. This will be its closest approach to Earth since 2011, and we won’t see it again until 2022. Look out for the comet from midnight on Friday - though you will probably need binoculars or a telescope to view it.

Five men convicted of organising and delivering terrorist speeches in Luton in 2015 have been jailed for over 20 years today, Friday, 10 February, at the Old Bailey.

Yousaf Bashir, 36 from Luton was sentenced to four and a half years’ imprisonment for one count of addressing a meeting to encourage support for a proscribed organisation.

Rajib Khan, 38 from Luton was sentenced to a total of six years and six months’ imprisonment - 18 months for one count of arranging, managing or assisting in arranging or managing a meeting to support a proscribed organisation, and five years for one count of addressing a meeting to encourage support for a proscribed organisation. Both sentences will run concurrently.

Mohammed Istiak Alamgir, 37 from Luton, was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment for three counts of addressing a meeting to encourage support for a proscribed organisation.

They were convicted at the Old Bailey on 16 August 2016.

Mohammed Sufiyan Choudry, 23 from Maidenhead was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment for one count of encouraging support for a proscribed organisation.

Ziaur Rahman, 39 from Luton, was sentenced to two and half years’ imprisonment for three counts of arranging, managing or assisting in arranging or managing a meeting to support a proscribed organisation.

They were convicted on Friday, 13 January following a retrial at the Old Bailey.

The five convictions are the result of an intelligence-led operation by Bedfordshire Police and the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, which identified the men as avid supporters of Daesh.

Bedfordshire Police launched an investigation into the activities of proscribed terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun (ALM) and, using a range of tactics, officers gathered evidence and intelligence which they shared with the Met Police in 2015.

The evidence included the fact that the five men had attended meetings in June and July 2015 at a church in Luton and a marquee in Rahman’s back garden.

At the meetings, Khan, Bashir, Choudry and Alamgir delivered incendiary speeches to around 50 to 70 people at a time, including children. The group praised Daesh and encouraged others to support the proscribed organisation, including by travelling to Syria to fight.

The group’s advocacy of terrorism was also evident outside the meetings. Alamgir collected money at the talks to pay the legal fees of convicted terrorist Omar Bakri Muhammed, seen as the head of ALM.

Officers from Bedfordshire Police and the Met Police Counter Terrorism Command swooped on the men at their home addresses in December 2015.

Commander Dean Haydon, head of the Met Police Counter Terrorism Command, said: “Today’s sentencing is good news for communities in London and Luton as these men were closely associated with Al-Muhajiroun, a dangerous group which has inspired and influenced numerous terrorists.

“My officers and those of Bedfordshire Police worked hard to gather the evidence needed to ensure this group’s conviction. They and Luton Social Services have also worked to safeguard the vulnerable children we identified were taken to the meetings and subjected to the radical speeches.”

Detective Superintendent Glen Channer, from the Eastern Counter Terrorism Intelligence Unit, said: “Luton is a fantastic town with great diversity and strong communities; however we are aware there are elements with extreme views who prey on the vulnerable.

“This was a complex investigation which was launched to target those who seek to influence others with their poisonous rhetoric. We used a range of tactics to collect evidence in order to bring these men to justice.

“This case is another example to show that we simply will not tolerate those who spread fear and hate in our communities and will continue to target, arrest and disrupt anyone with extreme views.”

Anyone with concerns about suspicious activity are urged to call the Anti Terrorist Hotline on 0800 789 321. If you are concerned that someone you know is being radicalised, you will find help and advice from a wide range of agencies at www.preventtragedies.co.uk

A university is seeking doctoral candidates to undertake a PHD - in CHOCOLATE.

The University of the West of England is offering a £15,000-per-year grant to study the genetic factors that influence the flavour of Britain’s favourite treat.

According to the prospectus, the successful candidate will study how the fermentation of cacao beans leads to specific flavour profiles.

The three-year position has been created in response to demand from the chocolate industry for more forensic knowledge of different cocoa strains.

Candidates have until February 27 to apply to the university’s Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences in Bristol.

Product reviews posted on shopping sites do not provide an accurate reflection of the actual benefit of the product, research suggests.

Psychologists examined more than sixteen hundred online reviews of weight loss pills and high cholesterol treatments on Amazon.com.

They found the reviews portrayed the products in a far more positive light than the clinical trial data would suggest.

And they have warned that customers should be “cautious about using reviews like these when deciding about health choices”.

Reviews and clinical data don’t match up

Dr Mícheál de Barra, from the University of Aberdeen conducted the research,

He found that the average drop in cholesterol using ‘Benecol’ was more than three times larger in Amazon reviews than was found in carefully controlled trials.

Similarly, reviewers on weight loss pill Orlistat lost about twice as much weight (14kg) as those in clinical trials (7kg).

Dr de Barra said: “These treatments are not entirely ineffective.

“However, what we show is that the reputation as described in these reviews is much more positive than the clinical trial data show.”

But Dr de Barra was also keen to stress that these reviews are not a deliberate attempt to mislead.

He said that the reviews appear exaggerated but are perhaps a result of a bias towards sharing positive outcomes rather than negative ones.

He added: “Only some people who try a treatment will then go on to tell other people about their experience.

“However, this subset of people are usually only those who have good outcomes.

“So, you hear a friend of yours had a good result using a treatment of some kind, and you think ‘well maybe this works’.

“Your friend is probably not lying - but the problem is that people with average or poor outcomes don’t tend to share their experiences.

“This means you get a positively skewed view of the treatment.”

Caution required when making health choices

Dr de Barra warned: “We should be cautious about using reviews like these when deciding about health choices.

“These narratives have a powerful influence on our own future health behaviour because they provide simple and clear anecdotes, but this study shows that they can be very misleading.

“These results also shine a new light on medical overuse, the use of treatments that are unnecessary and ineffective.

“Medical overuse is estimated to cost the $226bn in the US alone, and patient demand for medicines with limited value is one important cause.

“This study shows how a demand for ineffective medicines can easily develop when people rely on hearsay and narratives alone.

“Realistically, however, it is ridiculous to think that every health decision we make will be informed by systematic reviews - people have lives to lead.

“This study shows though that it’s important to be aware of the biases that can make informally acquired information unreliable.”

It is the first study to compare clinical trial data with user-generated online reviews and is published in the journal Social Science and Medicine this week.

Rhino-mad Crystal Mustchin is so keen to work with animals that she moved to Leighton Buzzard a year ago to volunteer at Whipsnade Zoo and push for her ultimate goal – a full-time keeper job.

The 24-year-old, who holds a degree in animal management from Winchester, is doing a skydive in July in aid of Save the Rhino.

She said: “I’m petrified of flying but I can’t think of a more worthy cause – the work the charity does globally is remarkable.

“If the Far East demand for rhino horn for ‘medicinal’ purposes continues to rise, it’s believed the five remaining species will be extinct by 2026. They are incredible animals who have lived on the planet for 40 million years and deserve as much support as possible.

“Doing the skydive is a real challenge but I’m determined to raise as much as I can, We can and we will save the rhino.”

Crystal, of Cotefield Drive, claimed the huge beasts won her heart with their big personalities: “My love for rhinos began when I worked at Woburn Safari Park. At Whipsnade I volunteer with the four greater one-horned rhinos and the experience and knowledge I’m gaining is fantastic.”

Her day job is working as assistant manager at family-run Pets Corner in Tring where she’s popular with their four-legged customers.

> Sponsor Crystal at http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/CrystalMustchin and follow her progress at ‘Jumping for Rhinos’ on Facebook.

Top Anglo Cuban band The Swanvesta Social Club (above) will be appearing at a fun night in aid of Leighton emotional wellbeing not-for-profit organisation Reclaim Life.

The event is at 7.30pm on Friday, February 24 at Tilsworth Golf Club and the £30-a-head price includes a hot fork buffet with vegee options.

The 10 piece Swanvesta Social Club has twice topped the Soundclick World Cuban Charts and has released three albums. Their music mingles traditional Latin numbers with their own compositions, together with interpretations of pop songs like The Final Countdown.

Organiser Linda Sear said: “They’re famous for creating great high energy atmosphere at festivals around the UK so a great night out is guaranteed.”

> For tickets call 01525 210550.

Pupils and guests have celebrated the latest landmark in the expansion scheme at Leighton Middle School.

A topping-out ceremony took place on Friday (February 3) at the school in Church Square, Leighton Buzzard.

The event was a way of officially celebrating building work on the new classroom block at the school reaching its highest stage.

It is the latest stage in a scheme to expand the school by 120 places, meaning that it will be able to accommodate 600 pupils when work is completed.

Year 8 pupils Alfie, Mackenzie, Annabelle and Grace were the first children from the school allowed on to the building site since work began when they attended the ceremony.

They were joined by Central Bedfordshire Council Chairman Cllr David Bowater, and fellow Leighton Buzzard councillors Cllr Ray Berry, Cllr Amanda Dodwell and Cllr Brian Spurr, staff, governors, representatives from Kier and officers from the council for the event.

Councillor Steven Dixon, Central Bedfordshire Council’s Executive Member for Education and Skills, was among those attending the ceremony.

He said: “Due to the compact nature of the school site, this has been a much more challenging expansion scheme than some of the others which the council has been involved in. So it’s great that we have reached this stage of the build.

“I have been impressed with the focus and support throughout this project by council officers, Kier and particularly Anne Thompson, school staff and governors.

“I look forward to returning in the coming months to see the final building.”

Anne Thompson, headteacher at the school, said: “It is great to see the building emerging into its environment; we are looking forward to the new opportunities that it will offer our pupils.”

The expansion scheme is part of the council’s ongoing commitment to provide more than 6,500 new school places over a five-year period to 2017.

> For more information, visit www.centralbedfordshire.gov.uk/school/organisation/programme.aspx

Leighton Town boss Scott Reynolds says his side need to get over their shaky starts to games if they are to start climbing the table.

Reynolds felt poor first halves against Tring Town and Sun Sports resulted in both defeats.

But stringing together two solid halves against Oxhey Jets on Saturday saw the Reds come out 3-1 winners to climb to 18th in SSML Premier Division.

“The last two games, which we lost, we were really good for 45 minutes and not good enough for the other 45,” said Reynolds.

“And it has been the first half we haven’t been very good, but we’ve been able to get around the players at half time, give them some encouragement and had good second halves.

“Unfortunately, having poor first halves cost us in both games.”

“This week, we put the two 45 minute packages together. If we can do that regularly, teams won’t be able to deal with us. We’ve proved that and put in a proper performance.”

Ben Gallant opened the scoring after 14 minutes for Leighton on Saturday as they began to make amends against Oxhey, tapping in Lorrel Smith’s cross.

Smith was extremely unlucky not to make it 2-0 to Leighton with some fantastic movement to get himself into a shooting position, he did everything right but over hit his effort just over the bar.

Town doubled their lead on the 35th minute through Dom Marsala with a neat finish on the far side as he drilled one into the bottom corner and the keeper couldn’t get anywhere near it.

Reynolds was disappointed in the manner Town conceded just before half time, blaming poor game management as Oxhey gave themselves a lifeline just before the break.

The Leighton defence switched off allowing Simeon Armstrong rounded Jack Sillitoe and finished into an empty net.

Reynolds said: “It was a really soft goal to concede. Two minutes before half time we were telling them to manage the game and see it through to half time, but we conceded.

“We started the second half well though, so we dealt with conceding much better.

“We will concede goals, but it’s about our reaction to that which is most important, and we’ve really improved in that matter.”

Smith was at the heart of most of the Leighton attacks, and was unlucky not to have had a goal yet, he was bearing in on goal but keeper Will Barker got out quickly to deny him.

They had to wait for the third goal though, and it came from in-form striker Lorrel Smith. Marsala picked a brilliant pass for Lewis McBride, who in turn picked out Gallant with his cross, but while his shot was blocked, Smith was on hand to smash home the rebound to continue his fine goal-scoring form in a Leighton shirt.

“We scored three good goals, and scored at good times,” said the manager as his side climbed to 18th in the table.

“We took the lead fairly early, doubled our lead midway through the first half and got a third towards the end to kill the game off.

“Lorrel got another, and I think that’s eight in 10 since I signed him, while Ben is back from injury and Dom scored two in four from midfield.

“It’s really good to see different scorers, but also Lorrel’s form going.”

There is no time to dwell on their result though, with a visit from sixth-place Wembley to Bell Close on Tuesday night.

Reynolds added: “We need to perform for 90 minutes. If we can do what we did (against Oxhey) we’ll beat them, and if we can’t, we don’t - it’s as simple as that.

“We might even need to be better against Wembley, so it will be interesting to see how well they travel from London on a Tuesday night. We go into it with confidence.”

Kick off is at 7:45pm.

A little bit of Hollywood will be coming to All Saints Church, Leighton Buzzard on February 25 (Oscars weekend).

For one night only, musicians from across the local area will be coming together to perform music from many much-loved movies, all in aid of Citizens Advice Leighton-Linslade.

One of the organisers behind the ‘Music from the Movies’ concert is Katharine Reedy, a trustee of Citizens Advice Leighton-Linslade, violinist and member of the Open University Orchestra.

For the last few months Katharine, who lives in Linslade, has been assembling an all-star cast of local musicians to form the Leighton-Linslade Gala Orchestra.

Katherine said: “For one night only, this specially created orchestra will bring the sounds of Hollywood right here to Leighton Buzzard!

“Everyone has been incredibly generous giving up their time to rehearse and perform on the night.

“If you love the sounds of Hollywood, do come along and support us.

“It’s going to be a fun evening, all in a great cause, and we’re very pleased to have the well-known Heath Band performing in the first half of the concert.

“Citizens Advice makes such a difference to so many people in Leighton-Linslade and the local villages, with advice on issues such as housing, debt and benefits.

“As a charity, we rely on fundraising events such on these to enable us to continue to supply our vital service to people in this town.”

‘Music from the Movies’ is being held at 7.30pm (doors open at 7pm) on Saturday, February 25 at All Saints Church, Leighton Buzzard and will feature the Leighton-Linslade Gala Orchestra and the Heath Band.

Tickets are £12 for adults (including a drink on arrival), under 16s free, and are on sale from:

> Room No.9, 5A High St, Leighton Buzzard, LU7 1DN.

> Selections Pet & Garden Stores, 34-36 High Street, Leighton Buzzard, LU7 1EA.

> The Spire Coffee Shop at All Saints Church, Church Square, Leighton Buzzard, LU7 1AE.

> Citizens Advice Leighton-Linslade, Bossard House, West Street, Leighton Buzzard, LU7 1DA.

They can also be purchased online via the website www.leightonlinsladecab.org.uk

Students from the Cottesloe School in Wing scooped three out of the four prizes at this year’s Rotary Club of Aylesbury Hundreds technology tournament.

Eighteen teams from four schools were challenged to build a mechanical shovel as part of this year’s event held at Aylesbury College.

The shovel had to be able to travel along a five foot tube, under a bridge and pick up a load.

Materials available to the students were card, wood, glue, a small electric motor and elastic bands.

Teams from Cottesloe came first in the Year Nine Foundation and Year 12 & 13 Advanced categories while Aylesbury High School won the Year 10 & 11 Intermediate section.

Cottesloe also picked up the prize for the best portfolio at the annual event.

Roger King, president of the Rotary Club of Aylesbury Hundreds said: “It was a great competition amongst the teams and it was heartening to see so many budding engineers.

“With this talent the country’s future is in safe hands.”

Other participating teams were from the Grange School and Waddesdon School.

A blaze at a Leighton Buzzard coffee shop was part of a busy few days for the fire service.

Crews were called at 12.58pm on Friday (February 10) to House of Coffee in Peacock Parade, Lake Street, after a commercial coffee making machine caught fire.

Firefighters say it was a “late call” and by the time they arrived five minutes later to check the machine the fire had been put out.

However, the machine continued to smoke and firefighters used a CO2 extinguisher and a fire hose to deal with it, deploying a thermal imaging camera to check for hot spots.

The incident was closed at 1.50pm.

Over the weekend Bedfordshire firefighters also dealt with four house fires and several road traffic collisions and car fires around the county.

Woburn’s determined Let It Shine contestant has made it through to the BBC show’s semi-final.

Jason Brock, 30, along with his fellow band members, Danny, Huw, Julius and Bradley, gave a stripped back performance of Coldplay’s The Scientist (Nobody Said It Was Easy), wowing judge Dannii Minogue, who said to the boys: “you have an invisible band linking you, and that’s what bands who have been together for ages have.”

Jason and his pals, who make up Nightfall, were one of three bands straight through to the semi-final thanks to viewer votes, and will continue to fight to win the role of a pop group in a new musical featuring Take That songs.

After watching the performance, judge Gary Barlow told the lads: “That was like a vocal masterclass - sublime!”

Jason and his fellow band members have been bonding during rehearsals, with Jason describing himself as the “big brother” of Nightfall.

He told BBC cameras: “Seeing what we can do really has brought everything together and we really look like a band.”

And the boys certainly looked smart - even performing with burning piano on stage! However, while Nightfall were lucky, Drive and Neon Panda had to battle for survival in the sing off, the judges saving five individuals from either band.

Next Saturday, the boys are tested on their dance skills in a bid to win audience votes.

A traveller whose van hit a 6ft 4ins tall, 20 stone ‘Gentle Giant’ was this afternoon (Monday) found guilty of manslaughter.

Christopher McCarthy, 22, of Greenacres, Little Billington, was cleared by a jury of murdering Patrick Maloney, who died from horrific injuries after being dragged under the van on a vacant plot on a travellers’ site.

When the jury at Luton Crown Court delivered their verdicts, Christopher McCarthy broke down in tears and was hugged in the dock by his brother Thomas, 24, who is 
accused of causing actual bodily harm to Mr Maloney minutes earlier on the same night.

Judge Michael Kay QC discharged the jury in the case of Thomas McCarthy, also from the Greenacres site, after they failed to reach a verdict.

At a sentencing hearing tomorrow (Tuesday) the prosecution will announce whether it seeks a retrial.

The court has heard there was a “simmering feud” between the McCarthy and Maloney families, who lived on the Greenacres and Toddbury Farm sites at Little Billington.

There was bad feelings between the two families after two younger boys had fought over a girl.

Prosecutor Miranda Moore QC told the jury that just before 10.30pm on August 2 last year, Christopher’s brother Thomas McCarthy went to the Maloney’s plot in his BMW X5 to pick a fight.

He struck 43-year-old Patrick Maloney with two punches, causing his nose to bleed, before he and two teenagers ran off.

“He comes up and faces Patrick who is standing outside his own home. Patrick pushes Thomas back because he was getting in his face.

“When rebuffed, Thomas retaliates by punching him in face, causing his nose to bleed and fall to the ground.

“Patrick was 6ft 4ins and 20 stone and described as a gentle giant,” she said.

The BMW that was left behind was then ‘trashed’ by the Maloneys.

It had a brick put through the windscreen and was attacked with garden tools.

Christopher McCarthy, who was asleep in front of the TV, was woken by his wife who told him the Maloneys were killing Thomas.

He drove his roofing van to the plot where it struck Patrick Maloney, a father-of-three.

Ms Moore said: “It hit him and dragged his body along the gravel on a vacant plot before doing a circle movement around the plot and leaving the scene.

“He suffered extensive injuries consistent with being run over and dragged under the vehicle. The van bobs up and down as it goes over Patrick.”

The van, which had damage from hitting two sets of gates and a vehicle belonging to the Maloney family, was found abandoned six miles away the next day at the New York Diner on Tring Road, Eaton Bray.

Christopher McCarthy told the jury he drove his van to where Patrick Maloney lived after being told his brother was being killed.

The father-of-two said: “I shouted ‘Thomas, Thomas!’ I could see his X5 at the bottom of the road.

“There was quite a few people and the back window was smashed.”

Then he said he saw “4, 5 or maybe 6” people standing by a gate and could see weapons. He pulled up next to his brother’s car to see if he was inside. “I was worried, I thought me brother was dead. There was nobody in vehicle.”

In a panic he said he reversed and lost a wing mirror before deciding to turn around in the unoccupied plot.

“I was crying. I was terrified. I was only thinking ‘How am I going to get out of here?’ I was shaking behind the steering wheel.”

He went on: “As I pulled in through the gateway I saw Patrick Maloney to the right of the van, not in the centre.

“I went straight. I swung around and came out.”

His barrister Richard Christie QC asked him: “Did you have intention of hitting him?”

He replied: “I had no intention of hitting him whatsoever”, saying he was not aware he had driven over him.

A Leighton Buzzard independent butcher is looking forward to defending its title at this year’s Bedfordshire Food and Drink Awards.

The 2017 awards were recently launched in Bedford with a call to customers to nominate their favourite venues across a range of categories.

Andrew Stanton, of Stratton Butchers, in Market Square, Leighton Buzzard, said: “Winning last year’s Best Independent Butcher category was excellent news for Strattons. The fact that customers voted for us reflects the fact that there is a huge demand for quality meat products.

“If we are lucky enough to be nominated again, we will certainly be going all out to win!”

One of Bedfordshire’s most famous companies, the brewer and pub company Charles Wells, is the headline sponsor for this year’s contest, where the category winners will be decided by public vote.

Peter Wells, Commercial Director at Charles Wells said: “As headline sponsor of the 2017 Bedfordshire Food and Drink Awards we’re very proud to be able to help celebrate those who share our Bedfordshire roots and also strive to raise the bar in quality and taste, proving that Bedfordshire really does punch above its weight in serving excellent food and drink.”

Last year’s food and drink awards spurred some 450 nominations and more than 28,000 votes across three counties and the organisers hope to emulate that success this year.

Awards organiser Damian Cummins said: “The interest we’ve already seen points to not only an immense year but to us uncovering and promoting some fantastic butchers, bakers, restaurants, pubs and food and drink makers across Beds.

“Our message to the public is – please get nominating now by going to the website www.bedsfda.co.uk”

Bedfordshire Chamber of Commerce is also among the sponsors because, as their representative Paula Devine said, food and drink is a very important part of the Bedfordshire economy.

Customers can nominate their favourite venues up until February 27 and voting will remain open until May 1. The awards ceremony will be held in June.

Nominations must be made via the awards website www.bedsfda.co.uk

Local businesses nominated so far include:

Best Artisan Bakery: The Little Buzzard Bakery

Best Independent Butchers Shop: HG Stratton Butchers

Best Independent Tea/Coffee Shop: Espresso-Head, Ollie Vees, Sorelli Cafe

Independent Food Retailer/Producer of the Year: La Belle Cake Company

Pub of the Year - Free House: The Bald Buzzard, The Black Lion.

Leighton Buzzard Swimming Club had two teams in a gala at Tiddenfoot Leisure Centre on Saturday.

Lots of young swimmers who hadn’t represented their club before turned out for the first time. An amazing 42 PBs were recorded and 19 first places achieved to give the red team first place and the blue team third at a hotly contested event.

First places abounded with particular success for the relay teams starting with the girls open relay swum by Isobel Kirtley, Shona Black, Hallie Grimshaw and Rhea Horne, closely followed by Daniel Holiday, Brayden Ditchfield-Watkins, Jamie Pugh and Will Abbott in the boys open team.

Other winning relay teams were those of the 11 year old boys: Toby Evans, Ben Oakes, Ryan Hawkins and Cian Ditchfield-Watkins and the nine-year-old teams swum for the girls by Tansy Denman, Emily Watson, Rosie Jackson and Lucy Holt and for the boys by Alex Keith, Charlie Bradshaw, Nathan Hancox and Eddie Cook.

The 13-year-old relay swimmers were also on a winning streak. Alice Hancox, Ellie-Mae Eaton, Jessica Dummer and Ruby Hancox swam for the girls and Brayden Ditchfield-Watkins, Ben Williamson, Toby Evans and Alex Abbott for the boys.

The squadron relay, which is always an exciting finale to any gala, was won by Tansy Denman, Eddie Cook,Emily Holden, Cian Ditchfield-Watkins, Bethany Smith, Brayden Ditchfield Watkins, Shona Black and Will Abbott.

Individual successes went to Lauren Feander, Ben Oakes, Jamie Pugh and Louis Hunt for their 50 meters freestyle, to the backstroke swimmers Alice Hancox, Poppy Perkins, Rhea Horne and Lucy Holt, to Isobel Kirtley and Emily Watson for their breaststroke and to Ben Williamson who won his fly race.

There were also a huge number of personal best times eight of which were due to our fly swimmers who excelled themselves in all of the butterfly races.

Personal best times were swum by:Jocelyn Kirtley, Ben Oakes, Lucy Holt, Phineas Fletcher (2), Cian Ditchfield-Watkins, Ruby Hancox, Ellie Mae-Eaton, Louis Hunt (2), Hallie Grimshaw, Jamie Pugh (2),Rosie Hunt, Ryan Hawkins, Emily Holden, Ben Williamson (2), Isobel Kirtley, William Abbott, Lauren Feander, Eddie Cook, Tansy Denman, Toby Evans (2), Megan Evans, Lewis Mildenstein, Honey Mae Longworth, Libby Bridgen, Zoe Munford, Ryan Chappell (2), Emily Watson, Charlotte Evans, Bethany Smith, Isabelle Oakins, Alice Hancox, Poppy Perkins, Jos Oakes, Nathan Hancox, Rosie Jackson and Rhea Horne.

Bedfordshire Police are inviting residents of Leighton Buzzard to join them at an upcoming event in the town centre.

Officers from Op Sentinel, the Special Constabulary and the Community Policing Team will be holding a Community Engagement Day on February 18 (Saturday) between 10am and 5pm. Residents will be able to chat with a police officer or PCSO and raise any issues and concerns.

There will be PCSOs and members of the Special Constabulary at a stall adjacent to the old fire station/clock tower, and two ‘drop-in’ sessions at the library between 12noon and 1pm, and 3.30pm and 4.30pm where the public can speak to officers who have working knowledge of their area. There will be an opportunity to provide information, seek advice and to enquire generally about the policing of the town.

Sergeant Louise Bates, who is organising the event said: “We are holding this kind of event regularly as we are dedicated to supporting our residents and tackling crime in the area.

“I would like to invite anyone who wants to raise any concerns, get crime prevention advice or just meet our officers and have a chat to come and join us”

Op Sentinel is a dedicated team which tackles various crimes relating to anti-social behaviour including drug dealing, nuisance bikers, prostitution and street drinking.

You can contact the team on the email address: OpSentinelCentral@bedfordshire.pnn.police.uk.

South West Beds MP, Andrew Selous, has asked London Midland managing director Patrick Verwer to investigate how many available seats there are for Leighton Buzzard commuters in relation to the number of season ticket holders from the town.

In recent days the 7.07, 7.27, 7.40, 8.07 and 9.33 trains have all been advertised as standing room only when they arrive at Leighton Buzzard station. A season ticket to Euston now costs over £5,000 a year.

Mr Selous said: “I have had concerns put to me that other stations further up the line are being given preferential treatment over Leighton Buzzard and I want this to be investigated.

“I am looking forward to seeing the analysis that London Midland have agreed to undertake.

“I am also concerned at the length of time Siemens is taking to repair the trains damaged in the Watford collision and I have written to the Rail Minister to ask that faster maintenance and repair be part of future contract conditions within the rail industry.

“It is not acceptable for it to take a year to repair damaged trains when commuters are suffering so much inconvenience.”

A London Midland spokesman said “ We have had a very productive discussion with Andrew Selous. Leighton Buzzard rail users have been badly affected by September’s landslip which meant we lost two of the ten new trains we introduced two years ago. We are working hard to find replacement carriages and hope to announce our plans shortly.”

What’s your experience? Email news@lbobserver.co.uk

Nokia has announced it will re-launch the world’s most loved mobile phone - the Nokia 3310!

The Nokia 3310 was first launched in 2000 and some people are still using them.

To date, 126 millions Nokia 3310 phones have been sold.

The 3310 won cult status because of its near indestructible durability. It also featured much loved games such as ‘Snake II’ and ‘Space Impact’.

The new incarnation of the phone will be sold for just €59 and will be launched at the Mobile World Congress later this month.

The battery life on the new 3310 is expected to much greater than the power used to operate modern day smart phones.

Former Chancellor Nigel Lawson asserted that the National Health Service was as “the closest thing the English people have to a religion”.

The same observation can doubtless be applied to the other parts of the United Kingdom and when the tenets of that faith are suddenly up for revision then its adherents should know.

That is why the Johnston Press Investigation Unit felt it important that we scrutinise each and every one of the 44 Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) that have been drawn up to remodel the NHS across England with the conveniently converging aims of making Britons healthier while plugging a £22bn hole in the health service budget.

Until December, these blueprints for far-reaching reform were carefully kept under wraps and even now far fewer know about them than should.

If you think the title of these documents is less than mouthwatering, try the contents themselves. Even by the jargon-riddled standards of most reports produced to analyse the structure and goals of large organisations, some of the STPs should be rightly accused of setting new standards of impenetrability.

But the future of the NHS is of course too important to be shrouded for long in the obfuscatory language of “affordability challenges” and “risk stratifications”.

Look hard enough in the thickets of small print and the contours can be discerned of a dramatically different NHS - one where hospitals are closed, services trimmed and concentrated but also one where people will be brought closer to their clinicians and encouraged to lead healthier lives.

The desirability and viability of these changes are matters for a critical and informed debate which, until now, has been hobbled by a distinct absence of detail available to the public about what the Government and NHS England’s five-year plan actually means in terms of the service 55 million people will receive - and doubtless eventually the rest of the population in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland where the pressures on health services are every bit as real.

Will there still be beds in your community hospital? How far will you have to drive to the nearest A&E unit? How will technology make a difference to treatment of a long term condition such as diabetes or heart disease?

We cannot claim to have found all the answers but our analysis over the coming days will lift the lid on changes which, whether by accident or design, have until now remained largely unknown and untested.

Only then can we decide whether our national religion is going through the sort of reformation we should support or resist.