Stop letting developers just buy up villages for holiday lets!
We need a national policy that gives local councils the power to limit the number of new properties built specifically for holiday lets or second homes. My town of Bakewell is drowning in them, and it’s pushing ordinary families out because there’s nowhere for them to live.
This isn't just about aesthetics; it's about the survival of our community. Local shops are closing because there aren't enough residents to support them year-round. The schools are struggling to fill places. We’re becoming a theme park, not a living, breathing village, and the people who actually live and work here are paying the price.
Local planning committees should have a mandatory cap, say 10% of all new housing stock, that can be designated as holiday lets. Anything over that needs to be full-time residential housing.
Scrap GCSEs for Local Skills Training
I think we should get rid of GCSEs and replace them with local skills training that actually prepares kids for the world of work. This is needed because the current system is failing to give young people the skills they need to get a job and contribute to their community. I see it all the time in Bakewell, kids leaving school with no idea how to run a business or fix a broken pipe, it's a waste of their potential.
The way it would work is that local businesses and organisations would work with schools to provide training and apprenticeships in areas that are actually relevant to our community, like tourism management, agriculture, and conservation. This would give kids a sense of purpose and direction, and also help to address the skills shortage in our area. I've seen it work with my own B&B, I've taken on apprentices who have learned the skills they need to run a successful business and they're now employing others.
How are we supposed to get to the next village without a car? Ridiculous!
Why are we still pretending everyone drives everywhere, especially in rural areas? We've got perfectly good buses going past Bakewell, but they run about as often as a hen lays a golden egg, and only to the big towns. It’s completely impractical for folks who don't or can't drive, and it’s killing the chances of people visiting smaller villages properly, not just swarming the main street.
My proposal is simple: let local councils, or even parish councils like mine, have a proper say and some funding to run actual local transport. Think small minibuses, community transport schemes, or even dial-a-ride services that connect the villages and hamlets properly. We know our areas, we know where people need to go – the doctor, the shop, the next village for a pint. We could make it work, connecting people and places that the big bus companies just ignore because it’s not profitable enough for them.
What do you think?
Vote on individual policies, adapt them, or write your own alternative. Good ideas should be tested.