The town council wants your view on its five-year market plan by 31 October. The survey takes about five minutes. Tuesday is the day it most wants to change.

Anyone who uses Leighton Buzzard Market, or has stopped using it, has until Saturday 31 October to tell the town council what they think of its plan for the next five years.

Leighton-Linslade Town Council opened its survey on the Leighton Buzzard Market Strategy 2026-31 on 1 October. The council says it should take about five minutes. (Leighton-Linslade Town Council, consultations)

When we reported the draft strategy in September, the town council had not said how the public would be asked. Now it has. It is an online form, linked from the council’s consultations page, and the strategy itself is published alongside it as a 13-page document.

Key dates

  • 1 to 31 October: the survey is open.
  • 19 November: responses are reported to the town council’s Market Sub-Committee.
  • 30 November: the final strategy goes to Full Council to be ratified.

The council says that once ratified, the strategy “will provide the evidence base to support future decisions about Leighton Buzzard Market”.

What you are being asked about

The council says it wants views on “the vision for the market and how we intend to support its future over the next five years and beyond”.

The vision it has written is “a dynamic and modern marketplace that blends tradition with innovation”. The strategy links that to new estates such as Chamberlains Barn and Clipstone Park, which it says have brought in young families and professionals. (Leighton-Linslade Town Council, Leighton Buzzard Market Strategy 2026-31)

The plan treats the two market days very differently.

Tuesday is the day it wants to change. The strategy says Tuesday has lost traders and enquiries while Saturday has grown. It does not want to bring back the old farmers’ market. Its Tuesday objectives include:

  • recruiting new traders and persuading Saturday traders to come on Tuesdays too
  • a food area with seating, using the new electrical hook-up
  • joint promotions with High Street shops
  • a Young Traders Scheme, work experience placements and market takeover events
  • using footfall data to find out who is in town on a weekday

Saturday is the day it wants to keep. The strategy says it is “not to make significant changes, but to protect and strengthen what already works”. That means filling empty pitches, keeping the trader mix steady and adding entertainment at busy times such as the run-up to Christmas.

The parts that affect traders

Some of the plan is about money and running costs, and traders will notice it first.

  • Stall fees now rise each year in line with RPI, “in line with other council services”. The strategy lists this as a step already taken.
  • An online booking system for traders is named as an immediate priority, with digital payments to “improve cash flow and reduce administration”.
  • Pitches would be prioritised for traders who arrive by electric vehicle or bicycle, under the environmental commitments.
  • Card and direct debit payments have already replaced cash for all traders.

The strategy also asks residents to “shop local and support the market, particularly on Tuesdays”.

Why the council is asking now

The strategy rests on three earlier surveys, which we covered in detail in September. Two figures from them frame this consultation.

In early 2025, 45% of the 121 customers who replied said they did not shop the market regularly. That rose to 66% among people under 44. In the town council’s own residents’ survey in May 2026, 86% of the 512 people who replied said they use the market.

The council calls the market residents’ third most important council asset, behind parks and events. It thanks the 512 people who took part in face-to-face interviews earlier this year.

What it means for you

  • To take part, go to the town council’s consultations page and follow the survey link. It closes on 31 October.
  • Read the plan first if you want to comment on the detail. The 13-page strategy is short and mostly bullet points.
  • Traders should look at the fee, booking and pitch sections in particular, as those are the changes that reach them directly.
  • Nothing changes yet. The Charter Market still runs on Tuesdays and Saturdays on the High Street, which is closed to traffic on market days.

If you are driving in for the market, our parking in Leighton Buzzard page lists the town centre car parks. What else is on in town is on our things to do in Leighton Buzzard page.

Sources