Cllr Andy Snape - Flitwick

That’s a wrap on my community fridge work this weekend!

I was on shift Friday evening, Saturday morning at Toddington Community Fridge, and Saturday evening back at Flitwick.

Really proud to be part of a team that makes such a difference for so many people, while saving a huge amount of good food from going to waste ♻️

Now signing off to enjoy a couple of days off!

We’re now closed until 09:30 on Tuesday.

Collections continue tomorrow and Monday evenings, so we’re expecting a great selection when we reopen ♻️

We collected just shy of 500kg of food tonight, great result! The food this evening came from The Cottage Bakery, Tesco Flitwick, Co-op Silsoe, Co-op Flitwick and Co-op Marston Moretaine!

Thanks again to everyone who came along, and a big thank you to our crew tonight - Nikki, Lorraine, Simon, Andy S and Tina. We could not do this without such an amazing group of volunteers. 💚

Great to have Citizens Advice providing a drop in service in our community! No need for an appointment, just turn up.

📣 The team from Citizens Advice are back at The Rufus Centre Flitwick, this Monday 23rd March!

From benefits and housing to debt, employment, and energy advice, their friendly team is here to help you find a way forward.

📍 Where: Templefield Room, The Rufus Centre
⏰ When: Drop in anytime between 9.30am and 12.30pm - no appointment needed!

If you can’t make this Monday’s session, don’t worry - Citizens Advice will be here every other Monday, same time, same place.

Citizens Advice is proud to be one of the Town Mayor’s chosen charities this year, offering free, confidential, and impartial advice that makes a real difference to our residents.

Proud to be part of the team at Flitwick Community Fridge that redistributed 78.4 tonnes of food last year. It’s hard work at times, but hugely rewarding, and we genuinely have a laugh while we’re doing it.

We’re looking for a few more volunteers to help share the load, whether that’s collections in our electric van or supporting sessions in the Food Hub. Shifts are organised through an online sign up system, so you can choose what works for you.

Come and see us for a coffee and chat on Saturday 28 February, 10:00 to 11:30 to find out more.

𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺!

Flitwick Community Fridge depends on volunteers to keep the service running week in, week out. Right now, a small number of regulars are carrying a lot, and we need a few more hands to share the load.

We’re looking for volunteers for two key roles:

🚐 𝗗𝗮𝘆𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀
Collect surplus food from our local supermarket partners and the regional FareShare warehouse in Bletchley using our electric van. You’ll work as part of a small team to make sure good food reaches the community instead of going to waste.

🛒 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗛𝘂𝗯 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁
Help with stock rotation, cleaning, setting up displays and welcoming and serving members during sessions. This keeps everything organised, safe and ready for local households.

All volunteers need to be comfortable lifting and carrying trays of food weighing up to 10kg.

We use an online sign up system, so you can see available shifts and choose when you volunteer and what you do. You stay in control of your time, while helping us keep sessions fully covered.

If you’d like to find out more, come along for a coffee and chat on Saturday 28 February, 10:00 to 11:30, or email [email protected]

Help us keep the show on the road!

As 2025 comes to a close, I have been taking some time to reflect on the year just gone.

It has been a challenging year personally, particularly after my Grandma broke her leg badly in July. That experience has been a reminder of how quickly circumstances can change, and of the importance of patience, care, and community support when life takes an unexpected turn.

This year marked my sixth year as a town councillor at Flitwick Town Council, and my second year as Leader. Stepping away from the spotlight of being Town Mayor was the right decision for me, and one I do not regret. Our work has become increasingly outcomes-driven, and together we have delivered on or advanced several long-term aspirations for the town.

It is an absolute joy to see the extended skate park so busy every day when I walk past; it's being used exactly as we hoped it would be. I am also proud of the refurbishment of 3 Station Road, led by Steph and Stacie. Delivered on time and under budget, the building has been brought back into active use in the heart of the town, and I look forward to welcoming the new restaurant opening there in 2026. Furthermore, we are almost there with planning permission for 25 affordable homes at Steppingley Road. These homes are badly needed, and the capital receipt will be transformative, helping to fund several major investments Flitwick needs in the years ahead.

We have also been developing a new community strategy to ensure that our events and services continue to reflect local priorities. Alongside the work itself, I have been grateful for the friendships formed and the simple reward of spending time with people who care deeply about Flitwick. I have also valued seeing my friend John pick up the baton as Town Mayor, bringing his own energy to the role, and helping him with his fundraising.

Flitwick Community Fridge has continued to grow at a remarkable pace. This year, we collected 78 tonnes of surplus food across 831 collections, providing the equivalent of 178,000 meals and saving around 53 tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Our transition to a membership scheme has allowed us to provide more targeted support to families who are finding things hard. Behind the numbers is a lot of "arm-twisting," an enormous amount of generosity from local businesses, and thousands of small human interactions that reinforce why community action matters. Getting to know people in this way is a privilege.

Alongside this, my role as a director of Toddington Community Fridge extends this service to my home village. People do not live their lives according to administrative boundaries, and working with Lyn, Andy C, Bridget, and the wider Toddington team has been a highlight of the year.

At the same time, events elsewhere—particularly the challenges we have seen in Dunstable—have been sobering. I was genuinely sad to see good people walk away from local government, even while recognising that, for them, it was the right decision. It reinforced for me how important it is that good people feel supported in public service, and that poor behaviour is dealt with fairly. Without that balance, it is challenging to keep encouraging people to step forward.

As we enter the final year before the May 2027 elections, there is still much to complete:

✅ Burial Space: We must find a solution—even if initially an interim one—to the lack of burial space in Flitwick, an issue that matters deeply to many families.

✅ The Nature Park: We hope to complete the next phase and advocate for planning policies that better recognise our local environmental investments, including the 27,000 trees we have planted.

✅ Governance: I am fully in favour of the Community Governance Review proposal to reduce the number of councillors from 17 to 13. This will strengthen local democracy and increase the likelihood of contested elections.

Finally, Flitwick Town Council is likely to need to play a bigger role as Central Bedfordshire Council addresses its financial position and the implications of the fair funding review. Taking on more must be done proportionately and sustainably, always with residents’ interests at the centre. I look forward to continuing to work with Ian Adams: Serving Flitwick and Steppingley, Councillor Heather Townsend and Gareth Mackey on these challenges.

While 2025 has not always been easy, it has been meaningful. I am grateful for the people I work alongside, the trust placed in me, and the opportunity to make a real difference.

Happy New Year to you all, and best wishes for 2026! 🎉

An amazing way to start Christmas working with some of the best people I know and getting to chat to so many people! Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas 🎄🎅🏻

A major milestone for Flitwick Town Centre – welcome to The Cottage Bakery!

Over the weekend, a few of us took a moment to reflect on just how far we’ve come since Flitwick Town Council purchased the former Barclays site back in November 2021.

When the site went on the market, we made the decision to buy it for the community. It was a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape the future of our town centre, and yes, it was a bold decision at the time. Rather than see it lost to more housing, we chose to create a town square as a hub for community life and keep the building in commercial use, anchoring future growth and opportunity in the heart of Flitwick.

The building has been fully refurbished, transforming a once-dilapidated property into a vibrant new space for local businesses. This has been made possible through major investment, including £290,000 from the UK Community Ownership Fund, £100,000 from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, with the remainder funded from the Council’s own reserves.

Earlier this year, we tendered the leases for the retail and restaurant units, and we were thrilled when The Cottage Bakery decided to expand into Flitwick. They’re a much-loved local brand, and their new shop opens today – bringing fresh bread, cakes, and a welcoming café space right in the heart of the town centre. Pop in and show your support!

Quite understandably, many of you want to know what’s going in the restaurant unit. All will be revealed in the coming weeks.

This project shows what can be achieved when town and parish councils are bold, ambitious, and think long term, investing for the benefit of the whole community. Here in Flitwick, we’re proud to do things differently, and I know I speak on behalf of all Town Councillors when I say we’re proud to have used our parish council to change things for the better.

As a trustee of Flitwick Town Mayor’s Charity CIO, I'm always looking for ways to raise funds so that our charity can support different community groups and projects in Flitwick.

Please consider signing up for the easyfundraising app and supporting us if you can. We'll get £2 for every person signing up in November.

We know many of you already use other cashback sites, but if you add your credit or debit card to easyfundraising, our charity will get a 50p donation every time you spend more than £70 in-store at Tesco, and 0.5% of your spend in-store at John Lewis.

💙 Support Flitwick Town Mayor’s Charity while you shop!

An easy way to get behind Flitwick Town Mayor’s Charity is to sign up to easyfundraising! It’s simple — shop with 8,000+ online retailers and we’ll receive a free donation every time you buy something.

This month only, with their Free £2 App-eal, if you register to support us via their app, we’ll get a bonus £2! Please get the app now and consider using it for all your Black Friday and Christmas shopping. Thank you!

We know many of you already use other cashback sites, but if you add your credit or debit card to easyfundraising, our charity will get a 50p donation every time you spend more than £70 in-store at Tesco, and 0.5% of your spend at John Lewis.

📲 Download the app here:
🔗 Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ef.easyfundraising

🔗 Apple App Store: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/easyfundraising/id915474725

Or sign up directly here 👉 https://www.easyfundraising.org.uk/easyfundraising-app/?causeId=405092&utm_campaign=pmc&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_content=app-eal-nov-fb1

💬 Please share this post with your friends and family — every person who joins helps us raise even more for local good causes!

Flitwick Community Fridge began with a conversation between Tina Connell and me in 2022. What started as a single fridge with two weekly collections in the foyer of The Rufus Centre has grown into a full community food hub.

Almost three years on, we now provide regular support to over 120 families on low incomes and have built a wider community committed to saving great surplus food from going to waste. So far this year, we’ve redistributed 40 tonnes of food, saved the equivalent of 28 tonnes of CO₂ emissions, and provided more than 93,000 meals.

I was proud to share our story with HM Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, Susan Lousada, and to talk about the challenges our community faces and why grassroots projects like ours matter so much, especially in semi-rural areas like ours.

Huge thanks to our amazing volunteers and everyone who donates, supports, and spreads the word. 💚

Recently, the Town Mayor and members of our volunteer-led steering group were proud to welcome HM Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire, Susan Lousada, to visit Flitwick Community Fridge.

We spoke about the challenges facing local people and how grassroots projects like ours play such a vital role — from supporting 122 families on our supported tier, to helping our wider community cut food waste, partnering with Citizens Advice Mid Bedfordshire to provide advice and guidance, and working closely with local businesses and community partners to redistribute surplus food.

Powered entirely by our amazing volunteers, this isn’t the kind of work most town or parish councils take on. Here at Flitwick Town Council, we’re proud to roll up our sleeves and make a real, practical difference in our community. 💚

Bedfordshire Lieutenancy

Fantastic turnout today for the Flitwick Car Show organised by local resident Jim Snook. Open today until 4pm at Millennium Park. ☀️🚗🚙🛵🏍️

I am so proud to have played a role in getting to this point with the former bank site in Station Road. Flitwick Town Council bought the site in November 2021, recognising the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution to improving the town centre and that the site would likely be lost to housing if it didn't intervene. No one else is coming to change things, especially in this economy.

We have transformed an almost derelict site in the town centre into two commercial units: a retail and restaurant unit. It was not cheap, but the project was delivered on time and under budget. We have a lot to show for this investment, and the community will benefit from the income from this site for years to come.

The Cottage Bakery will be a hugely successful addition to our local economy, and I know Simon and Judith Solway are passionate about their business. We're almost there with the lease on the restaurant unit, and my colleagues and I can't wait to tell you what will happen there!

Thanks to everyone who came out to enjoy the annual Flitwick Town Council Family Fun Day! It was amazing to see so many people out enjoying the sunshine in Millennium Park ❤️

A special thank you to our amazing team of public servants at Flitwick Town Council, led by Stacie Lockey, for their hard work pulling all of this together - so much work goes in behind the scenes. Also to Andy C, Bryan, Maz, and Leigh from the Flitwick Community Fridge team who spent the entire day running our stall and helping with litter picking and the popcorn stall.

Finally, a massive thanks to our charity partner Tesco Flitwick, which donated a LOT of soft drinks and fruit for the Community Fridge stall. I’m so grateful for their continuing support, which makes a difference to so many people in our community every day.