LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


Life away from grammars Dear Sir – In the last Mail Marks (South, April), Dennis Fowle discusses the estab- lishment of satellite grammar schools in the Sevenoaks area under the auspices of Tun- bridge Wells Grammar School. He makes a number of generalisations,which are surely open to question. He states that grammar schools allow the essential “cream to rise”. Lots of parents in areaswith comprehensive schoolswould be surprised to find their children are not able to rise. Children at wide ability schools such as Homewood, in Tenterden, might equally feel insulted. He goes on to say opponents of selection would be better employed raising the stan- dards in other schools, rather than attack- ing the best. We don’t attack the teachers and teaching in grammar schools, but the fact that selection produces winners and losers, successes and failures. I went through the same 11+ system he describes, but my selection for a grammar school in Cheshire meant others saw them- selves as failures. The phrase always used was “passing” the 11+. Selection for gram- mar school was, and is, always based on the number of places in a grammar school and not on individual ability. For every “suc- cess”, there were four or more “failures”. The establishment of satellites in Sevenoaks will surely mean local pupils will attend those, leaving lots of empty spaces in Tunbridge Wells or Tonbridge, which will be filled by taking more pupils from other secondary schools in the area, thus depriving those schools of their aca- demic leaders. The government will then


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step in and accuse those schools of failing. I amproud I taught for more than 30 years in Senacre, in whatMr Fowle would, no doubt, call a secondary modern school. I saw my pupils succeed in all walks of life, from the skilled trades to the professions, and felt hon- oured when a group of 50-year olds wanted to invite their ex-teachers to a reunion. There is more to education than passing exams. Mr Fowle should get into some of Kent’s secondary modern schools and see some of the sterling work teachers are doing to give all pupils, not just the cream, a start in life. Parents in areas with a comprehensive sys- tem, he should note, will campaign to keep that system whenever there is talk of intro- ducing selection. I don’t claim that everything in the garden


is rosy. There is still much to be done to im- prove the English education system, but se- lection is not the answer. He should ask himself why education in places such as Finland, which is non-selective, is appar- ently so much better than here. He ends by saying of his old grammar school that he reads “about significant roles so many of my peers play for Britain and their communities”. So, if you didn’t go to grammar school, you don’t! Brian Thomas, Maidstone and Malling NUT secretary


Parking fees deter shoppers Dear Sir – I am writing to say how much I agree with the letter from Barbara Skinner in the April 2012 Downs Mail. How many people are put off spending their money in Maidstone because of the excessive and un- reasonable charges in the town’s car parks? Barbara is wrong on one count, however.


She seems to expect that councillors and local government officers are actually capa- ble or willing to step outside the silos they appear to operate in and display a bit of joined-up thinking. There is a lot of concern nationally about


the demise of town centres.Maidstone is no different. One only has to walk around the town to see the number of empty shop fronts and businesses lost from the town. Many have moved out of town, where park- ing for their staff and their customers is free. Those businesses based in the town al-


ready pay high business rates, which must be a disincentive to them. If they were re- duced to a reasonable level, perhaps busi- nesses would be attracted to setting up in the town and the revenue stream for the borough might just increase. Turning to parking, through excessive charges, the borough indirectly taxes peo- ple and effectively punishes them for shop- ping in those town centre businesses providing revenue for the borough and, in some cases, struggling to survive. Can coun- cillors and officers not see how perverse and self-defeating this is? It would perhaps not be realistic to re-


move charges altogether, but surely there is a case for capping the parking charges at a realistic, reasonable level so people are not put off parking in the town and spending their money in the town’s businesses? On the matter of parking charges in the evenings in the town’s car parks, most of them are virtually empty at night. As there is no supply and demand issue, why were charges introduced? Could it be a desire to fleece the poor motorist yet again? PaulMillen, Kingswood


Travellers ‘flouting rules’


RESIDENTS on one of the trav- ellers’ sites that have sprung up near PaddockWood are flouting council legislation, according to local residents. Maidstone Borough Council issued a temporary stop notice (TSN) to Levi Smith on a site in Willow Lane after neighbours said he was allowing additional caravans to be placed on his land without planning consent. Council officerswent to the site


and served the TSN on April 23, in a bid to prevent further works, which had started over the week- end. However, buildingwork was still taking place four days later and, asDowns Mail went to press, there were three wooden stable blocks on site, and five caravans. One resident said: “At what


point will the council take en- forcement action to prevent any further development? Surely it is a criminal offence to continue to developwhen a stop notice is in force?” Maidstone Council’s head of


CHART Sutton Parish Council held its annual parish meeting in the village hall, where the following items were among those discussed.  PCSO Mat Thomas said the crime figures had gone up, from 29 last year to 34 this year.


gypsy sites is given considerable weight in appeals.” A council-commissioned Sal-


planning, Rob Jarman said: “The council takes unautho- rised developments very seri- ously and takes enforcement action where appropriate. The temporary stop notice covers all further development and engi- neering works, including hard surfacing, excavation works, and the stationing of additional caravans and mobile homes.” The notice lasts for 28 days


and the council is considering further enforcement action. Mr Jarman explained: “The council has a duty to provide ac- commodation for travellers. Gov- ernment guidance and recent appeal decisions in Maidstone Borough indicate that the need for


 Cllr Valerie Underdown re- ported a good year for Speed- watch, with more than 300 people reported.  The Reverend Chris Laven- der said St Michael’s Church had tried to make worship more accessible by holding


ford University report into the need for gypsy and traveller ac- commodation, published in Feb- ruary, indicated that for the period 2011 to 2026, 157 gypsy pitches should be provided. So far 23 gypsy pitches have been approved in the borough. The targetwill be achieved by granting planning permissions and a public site for 15 pitches, funded by a £1.36m grant from the Homes and Communities Agency, said Mr Jarman. However, he added: “The council will still undertake en- forcement action whenever unauthorised gypsy sites are deemed to be unacceptable on planning grounds.” As the Downs Mail went to


press, residents were awaiting the outcome of a planning ap- peal to allow residential cara- vans to remain at two sites in nearbyWagon Lane.


Parish matters on the agenda at annual meeting


quarterly more informal serv- ices in the village hall.  Brian Osmer said Sutton Scouts was marking its 65th anniversary this year, and urged any former Scouts or leaders to get in touch with him to share their memories.


Visit Downs Mail’s website — downsmail.co.uk Fundraisers


are rewarded THE work of three fundraisers for the Royal National Lifeboats Institution has been recognised. Audrey Bishop (right), from SuttonVa- lence, a founder member of the Maidstone Vil- lages Branch and chairman for the past 20 years, was to be presentedwith a Gold badge by the Duke of Gloucester at The Barbican on May 17. Sarah Bailey, from Headcorn,


andWendy Malby, from East Sut- ton, will receive a Bronze and Silver respectively, at the RNLI Training College, Poole, in June. The badges recognise their


long service and hard work. The Maidstone Villages branch, which covers East Sut- ton, Headcorn, Boughton Monchelsea, East Farleigh and Sutton Valence, raised £14,000 last year. Audrey said: “New members are always welcome.”


New role for clerk STAPLEHURST parish clerk Sue Bassett has stepped down after 16 years but will take on a part-time role as the council’s responsible finance officer. She is succeeded as clerk by MickWestwood.


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