Watch that speed


Boughton Malherbe Council


IT was reported that now more PCSOs had been trained up, they would be asked to help out with Speedwatch and may come out with the equipment at weekends. There were new potholes near


Woodsden Hall and the bottom of Liverton Hill. Problems caused by the drains near Stream Farm being above the road surface were re- ported and a drain was leaking just below Ivy House Farm near the salt bin. County Cllr Jenny Whittle


said she had asked KCC Cabinet members Nick Chard and Mike Hill to consider establishing a community lorry watch on the lines of a similar model in Not- tinghamshire, whereby resi- dents note registration numbers of lorries believed to have breached weight limits and other regulations. The informa- tion is passed to trading stan- dards to take enforcement proceedings and fines of up to £1,000 can be levied. She had asked Michael Heath


of Kent Highways to move ahead with the Liverton Street and Liverton Hill signage schemes but believed that the cost could be reduced. Borough Cllr Richard Thick


reported that a horse had been tethered, shot and left in South- ernden Road. It was agreed that the precept


requirement would be increased by £500 to £1,900. The chairman suggested that


any profits from the sale of the books by the History Society should be donated to the parish council and could be used to create a parish reserve fund. An email had been received


from Michael Heath that due to the cuts, the parish would prob- ably have to wait for both the good weather and some more money to become available be- fore the 30mph roundels could be re-painted. During December there had


been an incident at Liverton Hill where two continental ar- ticulated lorries became stuck and unable to pass each other, which caused chaos for almost half an hour. Kent Highway Services and the police had been asked if width and height restrictions could be put in place, otherwise it would not show on the satnav mapping as an unsuitable route.


Bredhurst Council Outgrown area


THE use of the playing field by Fairview Rangers was discussed and it was agreed that the club had outgrown the area. The


46 East


DownsMail In touch with your parish The clerk had thanked resi-


parish council would write a letter explaining that the con- tract would not be renewed. The following planning appli- cations were considered: 11 Fir Tree Grove, restrospective for the erection of shed – council- lors to look at application when details received; Forge Lodge, Forge Lane, amended plans/ad- ditional details in connection with previous application – waiting update on letter sent by councillors concerning original application; Plot 5 Redwood Glade, dis- charge conditions relating to erection of dwelling with at- tached garage – approved and granted. The chicane at Dunn Street


had been approved and the parish was waiting for Kent Highways to confirm a date for construction. The proposed budget was re-


viewed and it was unanimously agreed to maintain the precept at the same level as 2010/11.


Bird scarer noise


Broomfield and Kingswood Council


THERE had been complaints about the volume of a bird scarer being operated in the vicinity of Lenham Road. It was agreed to establish ownership and liaise accordingly. The launch of the cold calling


zone would take place on Satur- day May 7, by kind permission of the organisers of the village hall coffee mornings. Informa- tion, leaflets and door stickers would be provided to residents. Borough Cllr Peter Parvin had spoken to Steve Goulette at MBC regarding the ongoing roads issues at Gravelly Bottom Road. Cllr Parvin had also been advised that the sign outside the Nine Oaks development that was restricting drivers’ vision, would be removed shortly. The clerk had met residents


and KHS, including drainage engineer Jamie Finch, about on- going flooding and drainage is- sues at Gravelly Bottom Road. Mr Finch undertook to make relevant local enquiries of land owners and to take action to re- solve the issue once and for all. KHS had attended the previous day to clear out the gullies dur- ing which time it was estab- lished that some could not be unblocked. MBC had attended the following week to clear the build-up of surface mud and de- bris.


The clerk had reported vari-


ous potholes and sunken drains to KHS, some of which had since been rectified. It was re- ported that a resident had sus- tained a split tyre as a result of driving into a large pothole, since filled in, on the hill in Gravelly Bottom Road.


dent Rob Schroeder for taking delivery of the one tonne bag of sand (KHS having run out of salt), and the gritting he had done during the Christmas snow. Due to the difficulties and inconvenience he had experi- enced with KHS in regard to a further delivery, he no longer felt able to continue and the clerk had cancelled further de- liveries. Village hall committee mem-


ber and resident Sonya Roberts would be organising an event for the royal wedding on April 29. Following the closure of the


Kingswood branch surgery, the Orchard surgery in Langley had confirmed that any patient that was frail and housebound and had genuine difficulty in getting to the practice, would be con- tacted by the duty GP and arrangements made for a home visit where appropriate. Complaints had been received


about rubbish and dog mess in the alleyway linking Holly Tree Close to Lenham Road. MBC and KHS would be contacted. It was reported that the dog


waste bin in Chestnut Drive was missing.


No more wardens Detling Council


THE contract for the village warden scheme, which started last year, would not be renewed due to spending cuts. The scheme was intended to keep the village clean and tidy through the use of wardens who would remove rubbish and trim inappropriate vegetation. A permanent liaison had


been agreed between residents and the Kent County Show- ground. Borough Cllr John Horne wrote to the planning of- fice asking for a contact number to be available to residents con- cerned with traffic noise from the showground. Chris Evern- den of the Scragged Oak Resi- dents Association thanked Cllr Horne for his efforts. Cllr Horne had requested res-


idents of Hockers Lane to report to the parish council any cars parked at the side of the road near Ware Street. Several resi- dents expressed concern that cars parked here were a hazard. Kent Highway Services claimed it had not seen any cars parked in the area when they in- spected. The planning committee ob-


jected to an application for a single storey building in Scragged Oak Road for spiritual therapy and student accommo- dation. It was considered an in- appropriate development in a designated area of outstanding natural beauty and could lead to more traffic. The committee also stated that the creation of an ad-


To contact Downs Mail just phone 01622 630330


ditional access along this route should be resisted. It was agreed that the parish precept for 2011/2012 would be £18,519, up from £16,859 in the previous financial year, an in- crease of 15%. Due to financial constraints


and last year’s spending review, an audit of the administrative costs of the parish would start this financial year to “ensure the parish council operated with diligence”. The Detling design statement


was officially adopted by the parish. If adopted by Maidstone Borough Council, the statement would become a statutory doc- ument that would have to be taken into account in planning issues.


Downswood Council Play area delay


THE clerk had been advised that reassessment of play areas was due and therefore it may be a “waste of money” to refurbish existing equipment at Foxden Drive at present. It was agreed to delay until after the reassess- ment had taken place. It was hoped that three fur-


ther salt bins could be obtained form KCC.


Arrangements were discussed


for this year’s Christmas carols and lights ceremony, whichwas agreed for December 2, subject to the hall being available. A firework display was ruled out but there was a possibility that a “couple of rockets could mark the switch-on”. KCC had written to the owner


of the bush obscuring Murrain Drive/Monkdown walkway to request it was cut back. It appeared that wooden fenc-


ing would be installed at Mal- lards Way, as opposed to the parish council’s preferred op- tion of metal fencing (due to longer lasting properties). Therefore it was not felt appro- priate to contribute towards the cost of replacement. A restrictor bollard was dam-


aged by a sweeper in Old Church Road and was now un- stable. Repairs were likely to be required. The spring clean would be


held on Saturday April 9, or 16, between 10am and noon. The clerk was to establish owner- ship of land by The Spires shops on which the parish council notice board stands, as this may allow a maintenance plan to be formulated, due to the area being overgrown with weeds again.


Harrietsham Council Slippery surface


THE wooden bridge on West Street was discussed, as mainte- nance had been completed and it was extremely slippery in wet


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