Bedford must not be left playing catch up regarding the new town at Tempsford
On 28th September 2025, the Government confirmed that they intend to progress with a new town at Tempsford, with a large part of the development within Bedford Borough. This development is planned for over 40,000 homes. At the Executive committee meeting on Monday 29th September, Cllr Vann questioned the Deputy Mayor regarding which meetings the Council have held with Government officials, and urged him to share the assessment Council leaders have made so far of the potential infrastructure needs for Borough residents.
Frustratingly, there was no confirmation that any meetings had taken place. No infrastructure assessment was shared.
Cllr Vann commented,
“This announcement is on a massive scale. 40,000 new homes. Bedford Borough Council must be ready to face the infrastructure challenges to our roads, rail, health, education and more.
We must not be playing catch-up. It is incredibly frustrating that the political leadership of the Council are not on top of something that has been on the cards since at least January 2025. We now need to reach out urgently to stakeholders in this project and ensure that Bedford Borough is fully involved in all discussions. The Government’s own report calls for ‘proactive collaboration across local government’ in order to deliver this new town plan, and that there is ‘a live debate about whether there is the need for a new regional hospital’.
Decisions that affect Bedford Borough need to be made with Bedford Borough in the room. Sadly, the Conservative administration is asleep at the wheel yet again!”
ENDS
Notes:
Big city fear for Tempsford villagers near East West Rail station - BBC News
Expert Taskforce recommends locations for new towns - GOV.UK