BRAF members - who
we are
(under development - not all members are detailed here yet)
Agricultural Development in the Eastern Region/Shuttleworth College
ADER is a non-profit making organisation aimed at helping
farmers and others involved in the rural economy develop their
business by providing a coordinated range of high quality
business support. ADER serves all six counties in the
region by providing advice and support through the services of a
County Officer based in each of the land-based colleges.
The project aims to give a sound insight into the management and
practical issues that need to be considered when assessing the
opportunities on a farm or holding.
website
Bedfordshire Association
of Town and Parish Councils
Day to day advice and training is given to member councils on
issues such as law, procedure and the role of Town and Parish
Councils in Local Government. The Bedfordshire Bugle is a
bi-monthly newsletter that is circulated to all members and
provides information on a wide variety of issues concerning Town
and Parish Councils. Members of BATPC are also members of the
National Association of Local Councils, which provides
information and advice on legal issues, as well as lobbying at a
national level on behalf of town and parish councils. BATPC
plays on active part on the Eastern Regional grouping of
associations and is represented on the Chamber of the East of
England Regional Development Agency.
The secretariat for the Bedfordshire Association of Town and
Parish Councils (BATPC) is provided by Bedfordshire Rural
Communities Charity. For further details contact Louise Ashmore
on 01234 838771 ext 117 or
email
Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire Rural Support Group
Beds and Cambs Rural Support group
is the local partner in a national network of charities
dedicated to combating rural stress and hardship. We provide a
confidential listening, signposting and information service to
people suffering from rural isolation, stress and depression or
facing traumatic events in their lives such as redundancy,
homelessness, business failure or serious debts. We have
links with all the support agencies, rural housing funds and
career training specialists.
We operate through a network of
volunteers and supporters who live and work in rural areas and
can understand the issues. They listen to the problems, help to
identify the solution or relevant agency and stay alongside the
person or family concerned offering support while things are
sorted out and they are able to face the future with confidence.
HELPLINE NO. 08454 500 290
Bedfordshire and Luton
Economic Development Partnership
BLEDP is the
sub-regional economic partnership (SREP) for Bedfordshire and
Luton. We are a private-sector led limited company, mainly
funded through the Regional Development Agency for the East of
England.
Our primary role is
the development and delivery of the Joint Economic Development
Strategy, which brings together partners in Bedfordshire and
Luton including the local authorities, Chamber of Commerce,
Learning & Skills Council, Universities and the private sector.
In practice this means we are responsible for bringing together
our partners to tackle jobs growth, and to make sure we make the
most of funding opportunities available to support economic
development. Our latest ‘product’ is Investing in Communities (IiC)
which will tackle unemployment, skills and disadvantage.
website
Bedfordshire County Council
Bedfordshire
County Council provides a range of services to Bedfordshire’s
communities, local governance for Bedfordshire and good quality
public services for local people. Our strategy,
"Making
Bedfordshire Thrive" is based on an analysis of local needs,
research into public priorities and future plans. Four strategic
objectives set out short medium and longer term priorities used
to focus resources and staff on priorities and ensure we work as
one organisation to the same direction. The objectives are
Building strong and prosperous communities; Help those who need
our support most; Help children and young people to achieve
their full potential and Transform Bedfordshire County Council
into a high achieving Council.
A number of
services engage with Bedfordshire Rural Affairs Forum:
-
The Heritage
& Environment Service
(web pages under Environment
on
www.bedfordshire.gov.uk)
conserves
enhances and improves Bedfordshire's environment and
increase people's understanding, enjoyment, involvement and
action.
It covers Archaeology,
Historic Buildings,
Historic Environment Record,
Landscape,
Trees,
Biodiversity/Wildlife,
Farm and
Woodland Conservation.
-
The
Countryside Access Service
(web pages under Environment
on
www.bedfordshire.gov.uk
)manages the Public Rights of Way Network, Definitive Map,
Country Parks and other countryside sites. It also runs the
P3 (Parish Paths Partnership) scheme which supports and
works with over 90 parishes in Bedfordshire. The Service
works closely with a range of partners including BRCC, the
Greensand Trust, and the Forest of Marston Vale to deliver a
range of countryside management objectives. It also
pro-actively seeks and wins external funding to increase and
improve delivery. Over the next 10 years the Outdoor Access
Improvement Plan will be our guiding document, shaping the
way we deliver future improvements to outdoor access in
partnership with others".
-
The Economic Growth Service
( web pages under Business and Economy on
www.bedfordshire.gov.uk
).
Recently restructured to focus on job growth (50,000 by
2021) and sustainable communities, it encompasses economic
development and community regeneration, promotion of tourism
and accessing EU funds for these and wider purposes. Two
main service areas ‘Growth and Development projects
addressing the physical supply of new sites and developments
to fuel job growth and Enterprise and Regeneration
addressing the social needs skills and ensuring the benefits
of economic growth are felt by all our communities.
Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity
Founded in 1953 as Bedfordshire Rural Community Council,
Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity (RCC) is one of 38 RCCs
in England. In recent years, the RCC has worked more closely
with the five other RCCs in the Eastern Region, and the six
organisations have worked together to form a regional charity,
Rural Action East. This in turn links to a national body, ACRE,
which lobbies on behalf of its members to ensure that the rural
voice is heard.
The vision of Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity is ‘BRCC
aims to be the leading agency for sustainable development across
the county, with a particular emphasis on rural areas’. The RCC
works towards this both through in-depth grass-roots work with
communities and, in its role as an independent advocate for
rural issues, by influencing local and regional policy. The RCC
recognises the significance or rural/urban inter relationships,
and increasingly works across boundaries to enable it to achieve
its vision.
Bedfordshire Rural Communities Charity is both a company
limited by guarantee and a registered charity. It has a
membership of around 250 individuals, community groups,
businesses and statutory bodies.
website
Bedfordshire
Wildlife Trust
The Wildlife Trust is a wildlife conservation charity that
works for a better future for all kinds of wildlife across
Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and Peterborough.
Our mission is to protect and improve habitats and wildlife in
our local area as well as helping people to enjoy and understand
their local wildlife. Many wildlife species and habitats
have disappeared over the past 50 years. Once common species
such as primrose and harebell now scarcely exist outside nature
reserves. Hay meadows have become rarities, while water meadows
have dried out and ancient woodlands have been planted with
non-native conifers. The Trust is working not just to protect
what remains, but also to increase the numbers and diversity of
native wild plants and animals in our countryside. We are not
content with protecting what is left - too much has already been
lost – instead we want to put something back.
Our work is in five main areas
- Looking after nature reserves
- Creating new nature reserves and habitats
- Protecting and restoring the rest of the countryside
- Finding out what’s happening to wildlife
- Involving everyone in wildlife conservation
website
BigBarn Ltd
BigBarn is the UK's no.1 local food website. We help people
to find good, safe, accountable food from local sources.
We believe that the first thing people need when they decide to
buy food locally is information. Unfortunately we are now so
dependent on supermarkets, and they in turn so powerful, that
it's hard to know where the alternatives are any more. Our map
shows you where your alternatives are. Just enter your postcode
in our 'Find Your Local Producers' box and we'll show you a map
of your area with all your producers listed as icons on it.
Bedfordshire-based, BigBarn is a national business serving
local communities. It uses the web and interactive technology to
build a network of high traffic food and community websites
around a central website
www.bigbarn.co.uk. BigBarn's mission is to boost rural
economies and make them sustainable over the long term.
Campaign to Protect Rural England
The Bedfordshire
branch of CPRE (founded in 1987) is a voice for everyone who
wants to protect our countryside and is a leading contributor to
planning, countryside and environmental debates. It seeks to
protect and enhance the Bedfordshire countryside and its rural
communities. We welcome support from anyone interested in the
countryside - membership
is open to all.
CPRE Bedfordshire
is a charity financed by
members and supporters and is a
county branch of the national organisation, the Campaign
to Protect Rural England (founded in 1926),
widely respected for its rational, reasoned, and well researched
approach to rural issues
Thanks to the work
of dedicated volunteers,
CPRE Bedfordshire
monitors planning proposals that threaten the character and
wildlife of the county, making balanced and informed comments,
encouraging good design and campaigning against inappropriate
and unnecessary development. We work closely with amenity
societies and town and parish councils
and organise training sessions on
planning issues, but any concerned individual may approach us
for advice. We have an office in Bedford.
CPRE
Bedfordshire website
Our extensive range of national
office publications, of interest to anyone concerned with our
countryside and environment, can be viewed on
www.cpre.org.uk
Community and Voluntary
Service - Mid & North Bedfordshire (CVS -Mid & North Beds)
Community and Voluntary Service Mid & North Bedfordshire is the
umbrella organisation which supports and represents the
interests of voluntary organisations, community groups and
charities in Mid & North Bedfordshire.
website
Government Office for the East of England
Government Office for the East of
England is part of a network of nine regional Government Offices
across England. Government Offices were created in 1994 to
improve the way that central government prepared and delivered
its policies and programmes, and more effectively align delivery
of national, regional and local priorities. The Government
Office network has become the primary means by which a range of
government policies are delivered in the English regions.
Key priorities for Government
Office for the East of England are Local Area Agreements,
Priority Places and the Rural Strategy 2004.
website
Greensand Trust
The Greensand Trust is an independent environmental charity
that works with local communities and landowners to conserve and
promote the distinctive landscape, wildlife and history of the
Greensand Ridge, and to improve access, understanding and
enjoyment of this fascinating area. We work in partnership with
local councils, national agencies and the business and voluntary
sectors.
Our work includes:
- Promoting and carrying out conservation management of
important greensand habitats and species;
- Promoting the local distinctiveness of the Greensand
Ridge;
- Improving the rights of way network, including assisting
Parish Paths Partnership (P3) groups in their work;
- Managing open spaces, country parks and nature reserves
for the benefit of wildlife and visitors;
- Helping local communities set up environmental
improvement projects with advice, fundraising and practical
help;
- Advising and assisting landowners who wish to
improve the wildlife and/or heritage value of their land;
- Providing opportunities for voluntary conservation
work;
- And promoting environmental education for all ages.
website
National Farmers’ Union
The NFU is the largest farming
organisation in the UK, representing all sizes and sectors of
the industry. The NFU has been at the forefront of farming and
rural issues for nearly 100 years. The organisation was created
as a trade association in 1908 by its members, for its members
and its strength continues to derive from members who make a
living from the industry.
The NFU:
- Represent farmers and growers politically. Our
non-affiliation to any political party allows us to make
effective, independent negotiation at all levels on behalf of
members.
- Influence commercial structures to the benefit of members
- Positively shape the image of agriculture and horticulture
- Provide a broad range of valued membership services.
website
South Bedfordshire District Council
South Bedfordshire District Council
is responsible for a large number of local services that
directly benefit the district and the people who live and work
here. These include housing, leisure facilities, refuse
collections and waste recycling, street cleansing, town and
country planning, protecting public health, conserving and
protecting the environment and looking after the economic well
being of the area. Our ambitions are:
We work in partnership with the
police to make South Bedfordshire a safer place by
preventing people or businesses being victims of crime and
anti-social behaviour. Having a cleaner and more valued
district we want to improve the way we manage waste and be
one of the cleanest districts in the country. Ensuring more
housing opportunities in the district involves us looking at
and working on the many different ways of helping people move
into homes. We also provide a number of sheltered housing
schemes and the popular Careline service. Our Economic
regeneration team has helped business take advantage of European
funding that is available if they relocate to South Bedfordshire
and helping us to become a more prosperous district. A
more active district is one where there are plenty of
activities for all. Our community and leisure team help provide
sports, art, play, access to the countryside and many other
activities. To be a well managed council we work with
partners to deliver key projects so that we can share resources
and tackle community concerns, such as crime and transport. We
are also working with members of our equality forum to make sure
we are an equal opportunities employer and service provider.
website
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