VE Day Community Services Committee

At this week’s Community Services Committee meeting, Dunstable Town Council (DTC) reviewed plans to commemorate the 80th anniversary of VE Day. Councillors reviewed successful previous celebrations, where a £1,000 allocation enabled parts of our town to access £100 grants for organising street parties. To emulate these past successes, DTC Officers recommended we earmark £1,000 from the 2025/26 civic hospitality budget to support ten street parties across Dunstable, alongside a substantial £4,000 to be set aside for the Beacon Lighting event at Dunstable Downs on 8 May 2025.

DTC officers flagged that we are still awaiting confirmation from Central Beds Council for the provision of free road closures—a key element that had previously ensured the smooth running of these events. However, the Dunstable Labour Team were happy to support these recommendations to ensure successful VE Day celebrations across the town this year and an appropriate VE Day Beacon Lighting would go ahead as planned. We were really pleased to see other councillors present also supported this decision.

Some other highlights from the meeting include:

- Plans for Dunstable’s very own Soapbox Derby to celebrate 40 years of the Town Council are progressing well

- DTC’s brilliant youth outreach work is reaching more young people across our town, ensuring young people get more support and something positive to do in their free time

- DTC’s recently created ‘Over 55s Breakfast Club’ is proving successful, with membership already reaching 13 out of a maximum capacity of 18.

https://www.youtube.com/live/fO3dfg4gVag