When times are tough, it pays to advertise
THE Loss of C&H Fabrics
from Maidstone town centre is a serious and sad blow – but I cross swords with its bosses when they blame Maidstone Council. The council does not fix business rates. And Maidstone has worked well to increase footfall compared with neigh- bouring towns. C&H has been very poor on promoting itself in and around Maidstone – and in today’s highly competitive times you cannot live on past glories for ever.
Most thriving businesses
also know how to market/pro- mote themselves and there must be many good stories in C&H which remain unknown. As a newspaperman I de-
clare an interest in this. But I am also close enough to appre- ciate many wise local business people know the importance of good, well-targeted advertis- ing.
When I was a young jour- nalist I remembered a ditty
MailMarks
DENNIS FOWLE - President Kent Campaigning Journalist of the Year 2001 email:
dfowle2011@aol.com
which went something like this:
The turtle lays 1,000 eggs, The clever hen but one. But with all her clucks and
cries She knows it pays to adver-
tise. This stands good at most
times – but especially now when retail trade is under such serious threats.
A job too big? I WATCH local councils
trying to make savage cuts in costs with trepidation and sympathy–butIhavegreat fears for Tonbridge and Malling and Gravesham who
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Weightless bins Dear Sir – It is great to see the start of the new food waste col- lection. But one thing seems to have been forgotten by the council: the tiny black and or- ange bins weigh next to noth- ing, unlike the wheelie bins, so when I came back after the first collection, there were bins scat- tered everywhere by the wind. At least the bright orange lids showed them up clearly, for the most part. Although my boyfriend did inadvertently re- verseoverhis,andwantedto know which other bin he should put the bits in! I was wondering if the coun-
cil could supply S hooks so we can all attach the food waste containers to our weekly rub- bish collection bins. It would seem to be the most cost-effec- tive solution.
Morag Gaherty Bearsted
Overdeveloped Dear Sir - I write in reply to Bar- bara Skinner's letter (last month) about SHLAA (Strategic Housing Land Area Assess- ment) for development at Gat- land Lane/Farleigh Lane and the potential housing site for 300 units. I am not surprised, as it seems
that most available land is being developed in Maidstone. I've lived in the area for only six years and in that time I have seen development after devel- opment being built in and around what we are supposed to know as the county town of Kent. We need to decide what we
28 Town
plan to share a chief executive. Surely the person at the top
needs to be totally in charge in these difficult times and I can- not imagine how anyone can have strong hands-on control with two teams of officers and sets of problems to oversee. I understand how some council services can be com- bined if savings are big enough – but not the top job, surely?
Postal problems IT’S BEEN a depressing
New Year for post. Soon after decorations came
down for Twelfth Night a whole batch of Christmas cards arrived. All were posted
at least 14 days before. Then I had to collect an en-
velope from Maidstone Royal Mail offices and pay £1.53 (in- cluding £1 handling fee). The sender put two second-class stamps (total 64p) on the enve- lope which turned out to be marginally bigger than “large” envelope size. Royal Mail classed it a “packet” and said it was un- derstamped by 53p. The box of cards in the office showed me how many in Maidstone were suffering gross inconvenience and un- fair charges imposed by this appalling and confusing Royal Mail system.
Paternity dilemma I THINK it should be com-
pulsory for any new Member of Parliament to spend at least six months in a small business. Then such crazy legislation,
such as fathers having months away on maternity leave, would never have a chance.
You can write to us at: Downs Mail, 2 Forge House, Bearsted Green Business Park, Bearsted, Maidstone, ME14 4DT or e-mail:
info@downsmail.co.uk
want for the future of our chil- dren – a town we can be proud of or a town that has no relation to the surrounding countryside and open space that we enjoy at the moment. I want space not a concrete
jungle, bring the petition around again and let’s get busy making sure that this and other unnecessary developments stop. Mark Burgess (via email)
Wasting money Dear Sir - I am writing after reading articles on the Tovil Parish Council page in the Downs Mail. How much more do the peo-
ple of Tovil have to take from this parish council on some of their issues? It was only a few months ago,
in September 2010, that the chairman of the parish council was complaining about funding cuts from the borough council, whothemselveshavetomake cuts. But then, in October, Tovil parish councillors voted to pay themselves an allowance for at- tending parish meetings. When local people living in Tovil have to take pay cuts and also lose their jobs, why is Tovil Parish Council not making cuts? So what does the parish coun-
cil do to cover the shortfall from the borough council? It raises the parish council tax, which means an annual cost of £49.87 (up from £38.77) for a person living in a band D property. Does this parish council think local people have money trees in their gardens? The parish council then
raised concerns over the state of the footpath on the Fant side of the River Medway from Tovil footbridge towards Tonbridge Road. After the developer Barratt Homes put up a new metal boundary fence in the wrong place a few years ago, this caused a gap between the foot- path and the new fence when the old fence was removed. Yes, I agree it is a concern
when local school children and residents from Tovil use this area and are at risk of sustaining a foot injury by slipping into the gap, but it is not down to the people of Tovil to pay for prob- lems in Fant Ward, when the money should be spent in Tovil. If Tovil parishcouncillors are looking for things to do, they should look at items in their control around Tovil, like the new bus shelter on lower Tovil Road, which is being used as a teenage hang-out, is being drawn on and is in need of a clean. The parish noticeboard lock by Tovil Post Office also needs repairing. I just hope that the parish council can show the people of Tovil it offers value for money. Mike Hogg
(Conservative candidate), Tovil
Handyman search Dear Sir – I wonder if anyone at your newspaper or your readers can help. I understand that the wife of
the late Mr Pastry (Richard Hearn), Mrs Yvonne Hearn, ei- ther lives in or lived in the Maidstone area. I would like to contact the lady (or her daugh-
To contact Downs Mail just phone 01622 630330
ters) in the hope of tracing a copy of the sketch "The Handy- man". Can anyone help? Terry Andrews Banbury
terryboxman@gmail.com Tel: 01295 730112
Generous town Dear Sir – We held a street col- lection in Maidstone town cen- tre on February 5 in aid of the registered charity Greyhound RescueWest of England. The collection raised £426.81,
all of which goes directly to the dogs in our care, no expenses and no payment incurred. Our thanks go to the very generous people of Maidstone. RhianWilliams
Event coordinator for South East
Greyhound RescueWest of England (GRWE)
Looking for Heather Dear Sir – I am from Africa but studying in England at the mo- ment. I am helping a friend trace her English mother. Her name is Heather J Sharp,
born February 15, not sure about the year but maybe 1962. She has a brother Peter, a niece Emma, her young sister Pam and nephew Anthony. Her address in 1991 was 26 Queens Road, Maidstone. She used to work in a pub at that time and was once married to Graham Newman. Her friends included Jean Bennett. Anything your readers may
know about these people will be greatly appreciated. I can be contacted on 07538536371 or via email at
tongaja87@yahoo.com Inonge Mutonga
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48