THE new sports hall at Luton Sixth Form College was filled with fun on Tuesday (March 29), when almost 200 pupils from Pirton Hill Primary School descended on the state-of-the-art facility.

The young athletes were also able to try out the new astro-turf pitch and tennis courts during the activity-packed day, organised by college students studying for their Community Sports Leaders (CSL) qualification.

The aim of the event was not only to provide a fun day of sporting activities, but also to give CSL students crucialcoaching experience and an invaluable insight into working with young children. The students, who have already passed their coaching level 1 certificate and a first-aid qualification, were supervised by fully-qualified community sports leaders.

Events included relays and space hopper racing, leaving even the most energetic pupils worn out by the end of the day.

Pirton Hill PE teacher Phil Martin said: “The event provided a great opportunity for the youngsters to use some super facilities, and I hope it will lead to even more collaborative events between our school and Luton Sixth Form College.”

Alun Gwynne, course manager of PE at Luton Sixth Form College, said: “The pupils really enjoyed every moment of the day, displaying the kind of energy and effervescence that would leave most adults gasping for breath just watching!”

TRIBUTES have been paid to a popular local radio personality who died yesterday (Tuesday).

Ian Pearce, one of the best-known presenters and football commentators at BBC Three Counties Radio, died suddenly at home at the age of 56.

He had joined the BBC in 1989 from Challney High School for Boys where he taught English.

He was best known for his Sunday morning faith programme Melting Pot and his coverage of Luton Town FC.

LUTON Town managing director Gary Sweet has urged Hatters fans to throw their full and unwavering support behind new manager Gary Brabin.

Previous boss Richard Money, who left the club by mutual consent on Monday, never fully won over Town’s army of followers during his 18 months in charge.

With the club destined for another nail-biting play-off campaign to win promotion back into the Football League, Sweet took the opportunity to appeal for unity.

He said: “I’m really putting up a plea to all supporters to get behind us.

“Let’s not do what Luton Town have done in the last year and a half and get on people’s backs before they’ve started the job.

“I’m baffled sometimes. Here we have a bunch of fantastic Luton Town supporters, I’m one of them and I sit there and still support the team.

“We’re in touching distance of what could be a joyous occasion for us with victory in the play-offs.

“We’re firmly in the play-off zone and looking at a play-off final.

“I think we’ve got to get behind Gary Brabin, Alan Neilson, Dmitri Kharine, all the rest of the staff here and every single player that takes the pitch and support positively with Gary Brabin at the helm.”

The decision to replace Money was made after a turgid 2-1 defeat at Southport on Saturday that saw Hatters slip 15 points behind leaders Crawley Town.

Although Town could have had their pick of a number of managers, in work and out of it, Sweet confirmed that Brabin, who won Conference Manager Of The Year when at Cambridge United, was always first choice.

He continued: “One thing that we’re trying to achieve is effectively minimal disruption, because we do genuinely feel there’s not a lot wrong.

“Everyone involved in the club who know the team and the squad, does believe they are capable enough and can achieve what we want to achieve this season.

“Did we have an option to recruit another manager from outside? Yes. But you know what, it would be the same as last time we made a change.

“We had 150 applications and we could probably do it more quickly this time, as we interviewed some of them last time, but we’ve got a manager here.

“One of the reasons why Gary Brabin was brought in alongside Richard Money is because he has strong management potential and he’s now been given the opportunity to prove his worth.”

Brabin, who joined Luton as chief scout before being promoted to assistant manager at the end of last season, added: “Looking at the last month, I don’t think we were going in the right direction anyway, Richard will be the first to admit that.

“We all felt we needed a change. Between Richard and Gary they think there needs to be a change of manager.

“It’s easy for me when I wasn’t making the decisions (at Southport) to criticise Richard. He’s had my support from day one, as I’m sure I’ll have his.

“It was a poor performance. Yes I would have done things differently, but that wouldn’t have necessarily meant it would have worked. I’m going to change what I see fit and the most important thing for me is focusing on getting us promotion.”

HAVING classy midfielder Alex Lawless available for the weekend will be a great boost for the Hatters according to winger Robbie Willmott, writes Mark Wood.

Lawless has now served his three-match ban following his sending off against Mansfield and Willmott admitted he has been impressed by his team-mate’s qualities.

He said: “I came here and saw him in training and he is unbelievable, good on the ball and makes things happen.

“He does a lot of hard work and sprays the ball about.”

And he is sure an upturn in form is just around the corner and all they need is a couple of goal to get them firing again.

He said: “It’s just that one goal. I know we are capable of scoring goals, we scored four on my debut here. It’s just one goal we need and it’s going to flow. We have players that can score goals for fun.

“It’s Saturday, Tuesday until the end of the season. It’s (games) good to happen quite quickly as you can put it right.”

Team-mate Adam Newton, meanwhile, is sure Town will adapt quickly to new boss Gary Brabin who took charge of his first game on Tuesday night, the goalless home draw against Barrow.

He said: “Obviously it got announced yesterday.

“He just put in a normal bright session, nice and quick, nice and lively.

“There’s not much to change really, he wanted us to be nice and sharp, nice and bright and just wants us to express ourselves.

“He has got a reputation and rapport with the boys. Over the last year and a half he has seen what we can do and knows the lads inside out.

“Over the next couple of weeks he will put his own opinion across and wants people to express themselves.

“Starting tonight (Tuesday) with a clean sheet and the new manager is a platform to build on.”

On the individual errors that plagued the Hatters that evening, Newton added: “It’s just one of those things.

“You might be trying to make a decision and last minute it changes. That’s what happens.

“The main things is you’ve got your man covering you and that’s what team spirit is about.

“You are fresh off the back of a defeat. That’s still in the back of our minds. The expectancy of the crowd is because they know what we can do.”

LUTON boxing promoter Graham Earl has postponed this Saturday’s ‘Fists of Fury’ event, at the King’s Hall in Belfast, writes Mike Simmonds.

LUTON boxing promoter Graham Earl has postponed this Saturday’s ‘Fists of Fury’ event, at the King’s Hall in Belfast, writes Mike Simmonds.

The event, which was to be headlined by current WBU Lightweight World Champion Willie Limond’s bout with Jay Morris, was intended to showcase many of the Belfast boxers Earl has recently signed.

On making the announcement, Earl said, “I’m really disappointed that we have had to postpone Fists of Fury, it had all the makings of being a really fantastic show.

“It’s been one of those weeks, various circumstances conspired to put the show at risk early in the week, but when we started to get fighter injuries as well we couldn’t see any other option, but to postpone the show.

“We’re disappointed for the fans, who had been showing their support and getting behind the local fighters. We’re disappointed for all the fighters that were going to take part, especially the lads that were going to be debuting.

“We’re hoping to reschedule the show for later in the year, unfortunately it can’t be for a few months as we already have shows scheduled for the coming months.”

It is expected that Earl will be announcing a revised date for Belfast in the near future. In the meantime his next show will be at York Hall on Saturday, May 7.

THINGS aren’t going to change overnight but new Hatters boss Gary Brabin believes he has seen glimmers of the future.

THINGS aren’t going to change overnight but new Hatters boss Gary Brabin believes he has seen glimmers of the future, writes Mark Wood.

Town were held to a goalless home draw by struggling Barrow on Tuesday night and although Luton’s former assistant boss was disappointed by the result he believes the Hatters are heading in the right direction.

He said: “I would be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed by the result. Everyone dreams of the first game and hoping to win convincingly.

“I was on edge all day, I was praying and willing one to go in but it wasn’t to be.

“Things aren’t going to happen overnight. I just want the lads behind one another and enjoy their football and be a bit more attack-minded.

“We are not conceding. I think we have created enough chances which is pleasing for me.

“I’m disappointed for the forwards they couldn’t get on the scoresheet and I though there were some real good performances.

“They’ve fought tooth and nail and shut up shop quite well and I want to concentrate on the positives now.

“That’s what we want, teams making it hard for us because that’s how you get better.”

Brabin was thrilled with the reception he received from the home faithful, who he hopes can become the team’s ‘12th man’.

He continued: “I’m absolutely delighted. I’ve tried to speak to as many as I can and they’ve been absolutely brilliant and positive and I want that now until the end of the season.

“That’s a big part of what I want to do.

“I want the players coming into training with smiles on their faces and I want the fans to help them because they are the bread and butter of football.”

He is now hoping to build up their confidence ahead of the play-off and hopes they will be able to play with more freedom and creativity under his reign.

Brabin added: “Obviously the result wasn’t what we wanted but like I said, I want to come in here and try and build the confidence of the players.

“In patches I thought we played some good football in and around the box. Our attacking players haven’t scored but we’ve had a go at their goal.

“We’ve been a lot more offensive with not so may players around the ball but still kept a clean sheet. It’s not a perfect performance but I think we are going in the right direction and have something to build on.

“I just want to be a bit more attack-minded and have a bit more trust in our defensive players.

“I was restricted as we still have a few injuries and a couple of play ineligible. I never had the full squad to pick from but I was happy with the bunch of players.

“I can see a spring in the step of one or two and we’ve got to build on that.

“I thought first half we had a good few chances and were snatching at them a little bit and didn’t really test the keeper.

“I just said at half time to relax and try and enjoy you football and hit the target when you get your chance.

“In the next three or four weeks it’s all about building confidence.”

CRAWLEY Town boss Steve Evans has labelled the departure of Town chief Richard Money ‘harsh’ after Gary Brabin was installed as the club’s manager on Monday.

CRAWLEY Town boss Steve Evans has labelled the departure of Town chief Richard Money ‘harsh’ after Gary Brabin was installed as the club’s manager on Monday.

The two endured a rocky relationship, but Evans revealed he made contact with Money after finding out about the decision.

He said: “You never like to see someone lose their job and I phoned him on Sunday to wish him well.

“I think he has been harshly treated to be honest as statistically he was probably their most successful manager in terms of games won.

“I don’t think it was an easy job going up against us this season and our exploits in the FA Cup clearly were envied by their boardroom.

“It is a strange one, they are effectively one of two teams who can still win the league and they have sacked their manager.

“It shows they are worried.”

Meanwhile, Evans admitted that Crawley assistant boss Paul Raynor had played his part in Money’s downfall after Town lost 2-1 at Southport on Saturday.

He added: “Paul Raynor has got an outstanding relationship with (Southport boss) Liam Watson and we helped their preparations with a few bits and pieces.

“It was a big result for us as with five minutes to go in our game at Gateshead we knew Luton had lost so we accepted a point.”

THERE was a mixture of rumour and surprise at the departure of manager Richard Money in the Hatters’ dressing room on Monday, writes M.

THERE was a mixture of rumour and surprise at the departure of manager Richard Money in the Hatters’ dressing room on Monday, writes Mark Wood.

While the revelation came as a complete shock to Adam Newton, Robbie Willmott admitted to having an inkling.

The winger, who worked under new boss Gary Brabin at Cambridge United, said: “Obviously it was weird.

“We came in Monday and there was a few rumours Richard Money was going to leave. Rumours you don’t want to read too much into it.

“We had a meeting before training and Gary Sweet read out the press release and Richard Money said a few words as to why he was leaving.

“He said he hadn’t got the club promoted which he wanted to do and I can only thank him for bringing me to the club.

“His aim was to get the club promoted like any manager. He really wanted to do it for the fans, the lads and himself and he felt it was the time to pass up the reins to Brabs.”

Newton, meanwhile, admitted that it came as a major surprise.

He said: “I came in prepared to train and prepare for Tuesday’s game.

“The coaching staff and people upstairs discussed what decisions had to be made.

“It was a bit of a surprise but we just have to swallow it and move on and be professional.”

Both now believe the dynamics with Brabin will change now as Newton said: “I think we have got to take him that little bit more seriously.

“He is calling the shots and making the decisions and we have to respect that. He is the gaffer now.

“When he makes a decision we have to listen to it.”

Willmott agreed, adding: “At Cambridge he was hands on because he was the manager. He came here and he was the assistant and you take a step back and have to look at things in different areas.

“He was very jokey and did have a bit of banter about him when he was assistant. I think we can still have a degree, but it will have to be a bit different around the training ground with the lads.”

Winger needs to become more clinical

THWARTED attacker Robbie Willmott admitted that his one-on-one finishing probably isn’t the best part of his game after missing another in the goalless draw against Barrow on Tuesday night, writes Mark Wood.

Clark Masters made a fine stop to deny him in the first half as the Bluebirds held on for a point.

Willmott, who missed two similar chances at Newport, said: “I don’t think they are my strong point to be honest. He has made a good save. I tried to lift it over him but he spread himself well.”

Town also had a George Pilkington header ruled out in the second half following a push by Zdenek Kroca.

Utility man Adam Newton said: “We were a bit unlucky with the one disallowed, you need a little bit of luck.”

But both were in agreement there is plenty to work on ahead of the play-offs. Newton said: “Players, management and all the supporters and directors know what the team is capable of.

“Personally I think we just need to hit the back of the net a couple more times. When we go ahead we just need that second one and it will boost confidence throughout the team.”

Willmott added: “It was hard, they (Barrow) came here and shut up shop and defended well with a compact midfield.

“It’s very hard to play against.

“It’s very frustrating for us and very frustrating for the fans that pay their money to come and watch.

“Sometimes you have to play ugly football and put the foot in.

“Confidence-wise we are looking a little bit better, but that will come with time.

“It’s just goals at the moment, when they go in we will give any team a game, even Crawley.

“We’ve got a lot of hard games coming up. We just have to pick up away wins and home wins.

“The momentum comes with the wins and if we can take that into the play-offs, I’m sure we can make the final this year.”

A former Luton resident was convicted of benefit fraud for dishonestly receiving £2,677 in housing benefit.

Umar Waqas, 25, who now lives in Ilford, appeared at Luton Magistrates Court faced with a charge that he deliberately falsified a document to obtain housing benefit.

Whilst living at a property on Conway Road, Waqas declared he was not related to his resident landlord, who was in fact his brother.

Waqas pleaded guilty and was sentenced to a 12 month community order with 80 hours unpaid work and has to repay the benefits plus £120 towards the Council’s costs.

If you think someone is claiming benefits illegally, call the fraud hotline in confidence: 0500 500 777 or email: fraud@luton.gov.uk

THREE retail units measuring between 713 and 3,030 sq-ft are available at the new £9 million pound community building in Marsh Farm.

Futures House, in The Moakes, has a new open air weekly market, indoor cafe, indoor soft play area and business incubation unitss.

The retail units can be let together or individually. They are currently finished to a shell condition, i.e. exposed concrete floor and ceiling.

Shop one is 713 sq-ft, shop two is 941 sq-ft and shop three is 1,375 sq-ft, possibly divisible into two shops. Rents between £10,700 and £20,625 per annum.

> Phone S R Wood & Son (01582) 401221.

EVERY company must have a way of making sure it can stay in business if the worst happens to its data.

Flooding, fire, accidental loss and even deliberate sabotage can put a firm’s very survival on the line.

If computer systems are out of action, businesses may face problems in paying staff, complying with data protection law, taking customer orders, or having deliveries cancelled because of failure to pay suppliers.

According to Wikipedia, a remote, online, or managed backup is a service that provides users with a system for backing up and storing computer files. Online backup providers are companies that provide this type of service.

Just like a home PC, systems for backing up data runs on a schedule, perhaps on a daily basis when computers aren’t in use.

The backing up would collect and encrypt data before transferring it via the internet to the service provider’s servers or the company’s own off-site hardware.

There are many products on the market, with differences in pricing and levels of service, and companies like pchelpchentre, in Dunstable, that can help.

The big positive about online backups is they can allow trading to continue even if computer data has been lost.

Remote backup has many advantages over traditional methods, such as someone taking a tape or CD home with them. The most important perhaps being that the backups are stored in a different location from the original data. It can also cut out potential data transfer errors, such as changing tapes. Online remote backups are also automatic and apply encryption to data.

However, there are some potential downsides to be aware of. Sometimes the restoration of data can be slow, especially if there is a very limited network bandwidth. Other potential downsides could be if the service provider goes out of business or is purchased.

Data backups should be seen as part of the wider issue of company resilience in times of emergencies or extreme weather such as the snow of winter.

Bedfordshire and Luton Local Resilience Forum (BLLRF), based in Chicksands, says firms should consider all the risks to their business and develop a continuity plan to help them carry on. They say risks include computer viruses and hackers.

Visit www.bllrf.org.uk

NATWEST has appointed two new specialist directors as it rejigs its services for small businesses in the Luton area.

Lewis Finch has been appointed director, business banking and David Ellinor director, commercial banking for South Bedfordshire and North Hertfordshire.

They are based in the bank’s base at The Village, Butterfield, in Luton.

Business banking is for firms that turnover up to £2million while the commercial arm handles businesses turning over between £2m-£25m.

Mr Finch runs a team of 13 managers while Mr Ellinor has a team of 10.

Mr Finch said: “We are changing the way we serve the Luton SME marketplace by providing management support to what we perceive to be two distinct markets. In doing so we are placing our most experienced managers, who are all local to the area with those customers who can benefit most from their knowledge and business contacts.”

Mr Ellinor added: “We remain committed to supporting our Luton based customers and their business aspirations. The closer we can get to our customers, the better we can support them.

“We believe this new local proposition, with dedicated experienced managers focusing on the business and commercial channels, will strengthen further our existing customer relationships and attract new business to the bank.”

A LUTON machine producer is celebrating its highest earning month ever.

TRUMPF UK, in President Way, is also on target to record financial year 2010-2011 as its best ever.

The Luton base of the German multi-national is a sales and service base for the firm that produces machine and power tools, laser technology, electronics and medical technology.

The company recently held its three-day In-Tech open house and received £5million of orders from a record high attendance of just over 300 people.

Technical director, Scott Simpson, said: “Our success is indicative of how well our customers are doing. Many are near to maximum production and they are investing in new manufacturing technology to support this upturn.”

TRUMPF UK has the strongest recovery when compared with all other European markets.

The export market in particular is proving a real money-spinner for many TRUMPF customers.

Since formalising co-operation with machine refurbishers Severn Manufacturing Systems, TRUMPF has directly sold 20 units, adding more than £2.5m to turnover at TRUMPF UK.

Additionally, staff levels at TRUMPF UK are at an all time high and the company has confirmed that they have taken on another two apprentices. And as well as the £300,000 already invested in TRUMPF Luton facility, a further £100,000 has been allocated in the next financial year for more work to be undertaken. Top of the list is the development of training suites.

A COMMERCIAL property agent has reported an increase in enquiries for industrial properties available on a freehold basis.

Simon Edmonds, of Alexander & Co: Commercial & Industrial in Dunstable, said he is ‘pleased to confirm’ the market move.

He said: “This has been epitomised by the successful sale of a small unit on the edge of the Bury Park area in Luton, during the early stages of this year.

“As the result of an orchestrated marketing campaign a number of parties expressed a firm interest in purchasing the single storey detached unit, with the sale being agreed in excess of the guide price.”

He added that in the last few weeks sales have been agreed in respect of three industrial properties, inducing a shortage of units. He said that as previously unsuccessful buyers are still interested they will need to act quickly.

National chartered surveyors organisation RICS took a different picture of the overall commercial property market.

The UK Economy and Property Market Chart Book for April, issued last week, says a recent rebound in prices in the commercial real estate market appears to be ‘running out of steam’.

The report states there is a ‘very strong regional dimension to the picture with London prime offices continuing to be sought after’.

Activity levels in the final three months of 2010 were strong helped by continuing interest from overseas investors.

Meanwhile, the British Property Federation (BPF) says the Chancellor’s Budget was positive for the property industry, going as far as saying it was a ‘Budget for property’.

The BPF says changes it welcomed include confirmation of the intention to simplify the planning system, including allowing businesses to lead neighbourhood planning in predominantly business neighbourhoods.

> Alexander & Co: Commercial & Industrial is on 01582 699990.

THERE are so many good reasons for all businesses to have a written environmental policy.

The green agenda moved away from being the preserve of tree-hugging eco activists because savvy entrepreneurs cottoned on to the money-saving sense at its core.

It’s not all saving the planet by saving money; being green can help lift profits, too.

Government-backed help organisation Business Link recommends that all companies have a written environmental policy. They say the benefits include assuring eco-savvy customers that you have a commitment to demonstrable environmental management.

An environmental policy also maintains good public/community relations and, importantly, organisations won’t win business from the public sector or large corporate organisations without one.

“All businesses have an effect on the environment to some degree and the policy should recognise this,” says Business Link. “The policy should also allow its management to communicate its aims and objectives to interested parties, including shareholders, customers and suppliers.”

But every good policy needs to be reviewed every now and again to make sure it is relevant and it is being implemented.

It should also have achievable and clear targets.

As a general rule, the policy should contain statements on improvement, compliance with relevant environmental legislation, education and training of employees, monitoring of progress and review of environmental performance on a regular basis.

The importance of getting staff engaged has been taken up in a big way by two food factories up the A5 in Milton Keynes. They are competing with each other to throw nothing into landfill but it wouldn’t work if employees were not fully engaged.

Additional specific issues could include transport, recycling, minimising waste and the efficient use of water and energy.

Case studies are numerous of firms that have saved thousands of pounds by focusing on their use of energy, resources and water. One firm helped by support organisation Resource Efficiency East analysed its use of electricity and found that huge amounts were being wasted because its air heating was set to switch on and off based on the time in Rome. The time difference was costing thousands of pounds.

> For more information, log on to the Envirowise website at http://envirowise.wrap.org.uk or Business Link at www.businesslink.gov.uk

KINGSTON Estates has bought the final two units at the new Imperial Court office development in Luton from European multi-let real estate investment manager Valad.

The two units, totalling approximately 4,500 sq-ft of office space in Laporte Way, had recently been let to Randstad, the international recruitment firm, known in the UK for its Select brand.

Other units at Imperial Court are occupied by a range of tenants that include Regatta, Nu Technologies, UNITE and Animals at Risk Shelter.

Imperial Court is a 16,500 sq-ft development, comprising six, two-storey office buildings designed for the owner-occupier market.

Rob Howe, head of UK Real Estate at Valad, said: “We are pleased to have completed the sale of the last two units which brings this development project to a conclusion for Valad. The development has proved popular with local occupiers, attracting a range of highly regarded businesses.”

Valad manages about €4.9billion of assets across its 15 European funds.

OFFICE space is available in Luton town centre.

Raglan House in Alma Street benefits from its own secure car parking and flexible layout options.

Derek Brace of commercial agents Let Direct said: “Raglan House is a prestigious and imposing office building located in Luton town centre and conveniently situated for all of the local amenities and transport links.”

The second floor is newly avialable where there is some 3,182 sq-ft (296 sq-m) of floorspace.

It is possible that the floor can be split further, to provide suites of 1,508 sq-ft (140 sq-m) and 1,498 sq-ft (139 sq-m).

Mr Brace added: “Raglan House is well equipped for the modern business world, with many desirable features including a DDA compliant passenger lift, private secure car parking and a secure entry system.

“It is rare to find such a prestigious property with private car parking so close to the town centre and with great flexibility and layout options.”

> Contact Let Direct by phoning 01582 414142.

INDUSTRIAL space is available on a Luton industrial estate.

Commercial agent Let Direct is offering a large open plan unit plus, separately, space in a courtyard consisting of eight units on Britannia Estates in Leagrave Road.

The large open plan unit is the main image, pictured right, while the courtyard is in the inset.

A spokesman for Let Direct said: “The Britannia Estates is an established and popular industrial estate location, well presented and managed yet offering excellent value for money.

“Presently available is a large open plan unit with excellent eaves height and loading courtyard / car parking, ideal for storage, warehousing or distribution uses.”

The open plan unit has a roller shutter door and separate pedestrian access, and can be available from 4,798 sq-ft to 9,136 sq-ft.

The courtyard of eight self-contained industrial units are completed to what Let Direct says is an ‘excellent standard and ready for immediate occupation’. The units are newly available via the agent.

A Let Direct spokesman said: “Three of these units are already let with a further two under offer, so with availability already limited, an early inspection is advised.”

These units feature electric roller shutter doors, double glazed windows and doors, new gas fired heaters and new decorations throughout

A Let Direct spokesman said: “They are situated in an attractive courtyard with ample parking and loading areas, and are available on new leases for a term to be agreed. Incentives are available for swift completions.”

> For further information on the Britannia Estates units, or to arrange a viewing, contact Derek Brace or Stephen Waters of Let Direct 01582 414142.

LUTON Airport has held a special reception to thank 21 community groups in the town for raising £25,000 of aid for Pakistani flood victims in just three weeks.

The airport launched the appeal in November last year and local people were encouraged to collect dried food items and new blankets at centres throughout town.

Airport staff and community volunteers then packaged aid parcels which were flown direct to Pakistan.

Food packages were distributed to 556 of the most vulnerable familes in the Nowshera and Charsadda regions who are living in makeshift camps.