Council adopts shared vision for 2050
Friday, 13 November 2020
At its Thursday 12 November 2020 meeting, Full Council voted overwhelmingly to adopt Vision 2050 – setting our sense of our direction and where we want to be in 30 years' time.
Leader of the Council, Councillor James Jamieson explained:
The best way to predict the future is to create it.
So, in February 2019, we along with residents, businesses and local organisations started the development of a shared Vision for Central Bedfordshire 2050 in order clarify the ambitions that the community, stakeholders and sectors have for the area and the people that live and work within it.
We know that somethings will change, and others will stay the same. The Vision will build on the core strengths that Central Bedfordshire as a place has, what makes it attractive, what can be done to enhance it further.
During the process of its development we explored how healthy and sustainable communities can be built, in the context of future opportunities and challenges such as technology, climate change, changing demographic and economic trends.
The aims and benefits of the Vision are to:
- provide a statement of our aspirations for our place, people and the economy, which improves the lives of all our residents, communities and businesses
- unite stakeholders through a shared sense of direction
- guide future strategy and policy developments and investment decisions by us and partners, to enable more effective delivery of integrated interventions that better serve the current and future needs of residents, communities and businesses.
Councillor Jamieson added:
We needed to paint a picture of the sort of place we want Central Bedfordshire to be in 30 years’ time.
This Vision will influence and inform how we develop services, support local businesses, manage transport, educate our young people and grow our communities.
Fantastic communities don’t happen by accident; they happen because members of these communities have a clear picture of how they want their place to be in the future and take action to make their vision a reality.
From the start we were clear this was not something a council could or should address alone. That’s why we worked with other local organisations, businesses and of course our residents.