Village festival date RESIDENTS of Aylesford are gearing up for their village fes- tival at the recreation ground at 11.30am on July 7. A beer festival, stalls, fair- ground rides, music, theatre and dance are among the at- tractions at this family event. Admission is £2.50 for adults,
and free for those aged 14 and under. For details go to
www.aylesfordfestival.com.
Music at the castle AN OPEN air concert with The Greatest Take That Tribute Band will be held at Leybourne Castle on Saturday, June 23, to raise money for St Peter’s and St Paul’s Church. Gates open at 5pm, the band is on at 7pm, fol- lowed by a disco at 9.30pm. Tickets are £18 for adults, £8 for children. Call 01732 521222.
Head start for job seekers
A CHARITY helping Maid- stone’s youth find work has been given a head start. Friday People, founded in February last year, has just moved into bigger offices so it can quadruple the number of young people it is helping to train and get into employment. At the same time, it has teamed upwith hair salon Mon- key Hair, which is putting the finishing touches to the young- sters’ appearance before they go out for job interviews. Friday People,which recently moved from Mill Street to Kent House, is making significant progress in Maidstone at a time when one in five 18 to 24-year- olds nationally is unable to find work. The charity is achieving a
Continued from page one Partnership, which submitted the bid for fund- ing, said: “This is great news for Maidstone. It is particularly important that it links together four projects which deliver a consistent mes- sage into schools, colleges and to young peo- ple, both directly and via outreach workers and those involved in the town’s night time economy.” Paul Alcock, chairman of Maidstone’s Night Economy Business Forum, said: “Baroness Newlove is well aware of the excellent part- nerships we already have in Maidstone and that we will share our expertise with other towns in the UK as a result of winning this
Job Seekers Allowance of £56.25 perweek is a challenge.” Tony Mann, from Monkey
The teams from Friday People andMonkey Hair salon
69% success rate in securing employment for the pro- gramme’s participants, accord- ing to founder NickWard. Nick said: “Although latest un- employment figures show a slight fall, young people are bear- ing the brunt of the problem and there are 820 young people aged 18-24 unemployed in Maidstone. “It is clear to us that living on
Hair, said: “After paying out for living expenses, Job Seekers Al- lowance leaves very little to in- vest in preparing for interviews. Our stylists, Zoe, Becky, Bryony and Xavier, are donating their styling services to Friday Peo- ple to ensure that everyone on our programme looks smart.” The offices provide 3,500 sq ft
of space and have three training rooms, conference facilities and kitchen and dining facilities. At the heart of the charity’s approach is the recognition that employers need to see evidence that young people can make a positive contribution to any business.
Town’s alcohol efforts to be boosted by new cash award bid.”
Some£25,000 of the money will be spent on stepping up alcohol education in schools, while £10,000will allow the Urban Blue Bus to function on Fridays as well as Saturdays. Another £10,000 will support “Hot Spot” work by agencies battling to prevent drink-fu- elled disruptive and rowdy behaviour on the streets and £10,000 will be spent over the two years on issuing 10,000 free bottles of water to youngsters worse for wear at the end of a night out.
Baroness Newlove has acknowledged the
good work done in Maidstone in the past, par- ticularly with its UrbanBlue Bus, which saves
the ambulance service thousands of pounds each year. She has also applauded the town’sCommu-
nity Alcohol Partnership, which has tackled the proxy purchasing of alcohol and the “No ID No Sale” programme challenges anyone who appears to be under 25. Police patrols confiscate alcohol from minors and their de- tails and other information is passed on to the youth services to follow up. Other recipients of funding from the Gov- ernment Champion for Active Safer Commu- nities are Bury, Chelmsford,Cornwall, County Durham, Lincoln, Moseley,Newcastle, Shrop- shire andWakefield.
Bella Bag Boutique Find us in the High Street in West Malling
We offer a wide range of gorgeous bags at affordable prices (price range £15-£60 including our Italian leather collection).
We stock a variety of bags for every occasion from everyday use, Weddings, a weekend away, or a day at the races.
We also are available for private parties, let us bring the shop to you.
39 High Street West Malling, Kent ME19 6QH tel: 01732 872285
MAIDSTONE-CANTERBURY-CROYDON-LONDON-COLCHESTER TEL: 01622 765993 6 Malling Visit Downs Mail’s website —
downsmail.co.uk
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