Shock as mayor scraps £340k projects fund

Green councillors Paul Edmonds and Lucy Bywater say the move came without warning or consultation

Green councillors have spoken of their disappointment with an elected mayor's decision to scrap a local projects fund worth £340,000 - to save money.

The Conservative Mayor of Bedford, Tom Wootton, has suspended the so-called Member Ward Fund, because the borough council's budget is "under considerable financial pressure".

Existing commitments will be honoured - but no new applications will be accepted for the rest of the financial year.

The fund has been used for a range of projects, from CCTV systems to a tool-sharing scheme - and the creation of a burial ground.

A Bedford Borough Council report said the 2025-26 scheme was being ended early "to incur savings in the existing council budget which is under considerable financial pressure".

Cutting the total fund to £100,000 was also considered but rejected, as current commitments already exceeded that amount.

Clapham village's burial ground received money from the Member Ward Fund

Lucy Bywater, the Green Party councillor for Castle and Newnham, said: "We're really disappointed ward funds were immediately withdrawn yesterday in an executive decision by the mayor with no warning or consultation with ward councillors.

"We absolutely know the council finances are in a serious state but this sudden announcement feels like sudden panic mode."

Her Greens colleague Paul Edmonds said: "We've been really taken aback by the Mayor's executive decision.

"The sudden total removal [of the fund] suggests that the executive has realised - after way too many months - how serious the financial situation actually is and are cutting things everywhere."

The decision to scrap the fund was made by the elected mayor, Tom Wootton

The fund enabled councillors to provide money for local projects that would benefit their ward, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Among the previous schemes supported by the fund were:

• A pavement outside Wright House in Clapham village

• A burial ground for Clapham village

• Pollinator-friendly flowers in Bedford town centre

• Benches for Wootton Upper School

• Baby and toddler group in Wootton village

• Tool-sharing scheme

One of the projects helped by the fund was the reinstatement of a pavement in Clapham

The future of the scheme from 2026-27 will be reviewed during the next budget-setting process.

The report acknowledged potential "reputational damage due to resident perception of reduced council funding for community projects" and warned that some planned schemes would now not go ahead.

The decision notice stated: "Due to the urgent nature of this decision, ward councillor views have not been sought."

Unless the decision is called in for further scrutiny, it will be implemented on 16 October.