CHRISTMAS CONCERT AT ELSTOW ABBEY

On Monday 30 November the Friends of Elstow Abbey are organising a Christmas Concert. Our main performers will be the famous Luton Male Voice Choir, who sang so beautifully in Elstow Abbey earlier this year.

To launch the concert we have a joint Choir of 50 children from Elstow Lower School and Abbey Middle School singing for 30 minutes. Everyone is welcome and tickets are only £7.50 (£5 for pensioners) and children are free. Come along and enjoy some splendid music and start the Christmas celebrations early.

I am Chairman of the Friends of Elstow Abbey and we have raised £42,000 in 14 years to refurbish and restore our lovely Abbey Church, founded as a Benedictine Nunnery in 1078 by Countess Judith, neice of William the Conqueror. Last year we paid for the organ to be repaired - costing over £2,000.

CHRISTMAS IS COMING SOON!

FREE PARK & RIDE HELPS CHRISTMAS SHOPPERS FIGHT CREDIT CRUNCH

Bedfordshire County Council has announced that its Park and Ride Service will be free over the Christmas Period, starting on Monday 1st December until 31 December, to help shoppers and small businesses fight the Christmas credit crunch.

This is one of a series of initiatives where the County Council is helping residents and small businesses fight the credit crunch. Recently the Council launched its new PayPlus scheme to help its small business suppliers receive fast track payment of invoices within 20 days or less.

Bedford Borough Council has also announced that free town centre car parking will be provided for Christmas shoppers on 19, 20, 22 and 23 December.

ROAD SAFETY AWARENESS

On a more sober note, Beds CC's Road Safety Team, who recently won an International Road Safety Award, have launched a new road safety campaign "17-25 year olds - no time to die" to encourage safe driving in young motorists. Fatal crashes involving 17-25 year olds account for 40% of all road accidents nationally. Over the past 5 years, 32 men and 8 women between 17 and 25 years have died in road crashes on Bedfordshire's roads. The Road Safety Team will be handing out torch key rings, using the motto 'see the light, read the risk' to young drivers to act as a reminder.

The Road Safety Team are also carrying out free safety checks around Bedfordshire on child car seats. A recent campaign by Trading Standards and Road Advisory teams revealed that 140 child car seats were fitted incorrectly and needed adjustment.
For further advice on child car safety, please visit the following website: www.childcarseats.org.uk.