Dear editor,
I am writing to provide an important update on the growing concerns among Kempston residents regarding Grace Community Church’s controversial proposal to develop land along Cemetery Road.
This project, as your readers may recall, includes a “community hub” (a church by another name), a large car park, and seventy-eight houses — the latter presented as “enabling development” to fund the church.
Let’s begin with the most glaring issue: the site lies on a floodplain. Building here not only risks exacerbating runoff into Church Walk and nearby properties but also ignores the increasing reality of climate change.
Recent floods in Kempston — not to mention the devastating scenes in Leicestershire and other parts of the UK — are stark reminders that flood plains are becoming even more dangerous for development.
Ignoring these risks is reckless, and residents are rightly concerned about the consequences.
Another contentious issue is the developer’s refusal to include affordable housing in their plans, citing the high costs of their project. This flies in the face of Bedford Borough Council’s policy, which requires 30% of new housing to be affordable.
The Council must now commission an external “viability assessment” to scrutinize the developer’s costings, but residents are growing increasingly frustrated.
Why should the applicant be allowed to sidestep their obligations to provide affordable homes, especially when housing affordability is a critical issue in our community?
School places
On top of this, Bedford Borough Council’s education department has raised alarms about the strain seventy-eight new households would place on local schools, many of which are already at capacity.
Based on their calculations, the additional provision needed for school-age, early years, and SEND pupils would cost over £1 million in capital investment.
Read: “Places are tight” as council confirms pressure on secondary school spots
If the developers claim they can’t afford affordable housing, how will they possibly fund the Section 106 contributions required to support our schools?
The concerns don’t stop there. A longstanding vision to connect Milton Keynes and Bedford via a waterway, championed by the Bedford and Milton Keynes Waterway Trust, is now at risk.
This ambitious project would link the Grand Union Canal to the River Great Ouse, with the route running from Kempston Mill along Cemetery Road — directly through the proposed site of the church and housing estate.
The Council has previously preserved this route under its allocations and designations policy, and the waterway has enjoyed widespread support, including £4 million in funding from the Covanta incinerator planning deal.
Local residents have already embraced the waterway’s first stages, such as the popular landing stage at Kempston Mill, built in 2021. Yet Grace Community Church’s plans barely acknowledge this major project, let alone align with it.
Worse still, they’ve offered no financial contributions to the waterway, as would typically be expected under Council policy.
In summary, this proposal doesn’t just fail Kempston residents; it actively undermines our community’s future.
From flooding risks to the lack of affordable housing, the strain on schools, and disregard for our cherished waterway project, Grace Community Church’s plans are deeply flawed.
We deserve better — for our residents, our environment, and our shared vision for Kempston.
Cllr James Valentine,
Labour Borough Councillor, Kempston West.
Editor’s note: Cllr Valentine writes this letter as ward councillor for Kempston West. It is not written on behalf of the Council’s Labour Group nor are they responsible for the content.
Letters published do not reflect the views of the Bedford Independent.
If you would like to respond to any issues raised, please email
letters@bedfordindependent.co.uk.
