Bishop's Stortford News
The latest Bishop's Stortford news: planning decisions, council and crime updates, business and community stories, each linked back to its official source.
Top story
Mackay Property, Sawbridgeworth: £468,920 Owed to Creditors
Two Mackay Property companies were wound up on 8 September owing £468,920, with HMRC owed £257,956. The Bell Street office now trades as Muvin.
More stories
East Herts Council
East Herts Community Assets: Buyers Get a Full Year
Councillors decide on 29 September whether community groups get 12 months, not six, to buy a listed pub. Sawbridgeworth Library joined the register in May.
House prices
East Herts house prices: terraces hit a record £415,559
Terraced homes set a record £415,559 in July, the only East Herts type that rose. The district average slipped £732 to £457,417. Full figures.
Planning
Sheering Mill Lane injunction stays, trial listed for 2027
The High Court kept the Sawbridgeworth injunction and its arrest powers, and the council has served a notice to restore the site. Trial after 1 January.
Jobs
East Herts claimant count: over-50s up 11% in a year
East Herts over-50s claiming out-of-work benefits rose 11.3% in a year, three times the England rate, and the district's total rose fastest in Herts again.
East Herts Council
East Herts Local Plan: new call for sites opens 15 October
Landowners get a second chance to offer fields for housing, 15 October to 26 November, after the new NPPF opened up Green Belt near stations. 283 came in 2024.
East Herts Council
East Herts complaints doubled to 228, and bins drove 61%
Complaints to East Herts hit 228 in 2025/26, the most on the council's record, and the waste rollout accounts for 61%. Just 53.5% were answered in 10 days.
East Herts Council
East Herts Merger Paused: May 2027 Election Back On
The government has paused the East Herts and Broxbourne unitary. Shadow authority elections are off, and East Herts votes as usual in May 2027.
East Herts Council
£76,100 Backs Brompton Bike Hubs at Hertford and Ware
East Herts has signed off £76,100 for Brompton hire hubs at Hertford East and Ware stations, and up to £57,000 for solar panels on BEAM in Hertford.
Bishop's Stortford
Old River Lane: 171-Home Scheme No Longer Viable
Cityheart has told East Herts the 171-home Old River Lane scheme cannot be built as proposed. An all-affordable option is now on the table, with no timetable.
East Herts Council
East Herts Taxi Cap: 210 Allowed, Just 175 Licensed
East Herts wants to remove its 210-vehicle hackney carriage cap after the fleet fell to 175. Nine taxi policy changes go to committee on Wednesday 9 September.
Bishop's Stortford
Water Lane Hall: Council Asked for £22,500 to Proceed
East Herts is asked to spend £22,500 on legal work towards handing Water Lane Hall to a community company. The Executive decides on Tuesday 8 September.
East Herts Council
East Herts £440k Overspend: BEAM Deficit Hits £302k
East Herts is three months into the year and £440,000 over budget. BEAM in Hertford is forecast to lose £302,000, and planning agency staff add £297,000.
Planning
Sheering Mill Lane: how the injunction cleared the site
An amended injunction served at 12.30am on 31 August cleared the site, with police attending and no arrests needed. The order was continued on 15 September.
Housing
Scholars Walk Bishop's Stortford: Prices From £482,500
Bellway's 208 homes on the old Bishop's Stortford High School site are on sale from £482,500. First residents move in early 2027, and the travel plan is now in.
Housing
Sele Farm Hertford: Council Land Could Go at Nil Cost
East Herts has signed a three year deal with landlord SNG at Sele Farm. It lets the council hand over plots at nil cost, and says it is not legally binding.
Local government
East Herts and Broxbourne Council: 75 seats, 2027 vote
The council replacing East Herts and Broxbourne has a legal name, 75 seats and a May 2027 election. Neither council says so; the government's letters do.
Jobs
East Herts benefit claims rise fastest in Hertfordshire
East Herts recorded 1,930 unemployment-related claims in July, up 7.8% in a year, the steepest rise of the county's ten districts. Waltham Cross ward is on 5.1%.
House prices
East Herts June house price record revised to £458,149
Land Registry has cut its June East Herts average by £2,629, to £458,149 and +3.4%. It is still the record month. Broxbourne gained just £1,786.
Arts
Arts in East Herts 2026: 28 groups share £19,503
East Herts Council has awarded £19,503 of lottery money to 28 artists and groups for September and October events. Here is the full list of who got what.
Bins
East Herts bins a year on: rubbish down 36% from a 43% start
A year after the three-weekly bin switch, non-recyclable waste is down 36% and East Herts has caddied 6,500 tonnes of food waste. Defra's last full-year recycling rate for the district was 43.2%.
Planning
Buntingford Business Park: 112-job plan set for approval
Four industrial units and up to 112 jobs at Buntingford Business Park go before East Herts councillors at 7pm tonight, with officers recommending approval.