LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


Parking puts us off town Dear Sir - Having attended part of the Olympic Torch Community concert in Mote Park, it was a shame to discover that on re- turning to our car in theMote Road pay and display car park, where my vehicle was parked correctly in a bay, that we had been issued with a penalty charge notice a mere six minutes after the expiry time on our ticket. Technically yes, we had “parked after the expiry of paid-for time”, but surely on an occasion such as this, where MBC was al- legedly keen to have the community cele- brating the Olympic torch arrival, a little leniency could have been applied? But then this is the council that allows the


major car park operator at Fremlin Walk to charge DOUBLE the amount for parking on a Saturday compared to a weekday,whenmany wish to shop, go to the theatre or dine out. This reinforces my belief that, despite


MBC’s spending of millions to create a High Street where people can enjoy such activi- ties, until they address the availability and cost of parking in the town, many, like me, will be staying away.


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


Well done MBC – the Olympic celebra-


tionswill certainly be memorable for us, but not for the best reasons! Mrs C Rennison, by email


Wrong sort of shopping trip Dear Sir – What spoilsports Maidstone Bor- ough Council are. My husband and I spent many a lunch hour watching unsuspecting shoppers around Jubilee Square tripping over the new, expensive paving. We could easily reach double figures whilewe shared a sandwich and now it has been spoilt by some clumsily-painted yellow lines! We also witnessed several elderly unfor- tunates trying to get up on to the kerb by the junction of King Street and Week Street, only to realise it was far too high at one end. For Maidstone’s economic development manager John Foster to say: “There have only been a small number of trips and falls,” can only mean he inhabits a parallel uni- verse, where “emergency” works by UK Power networks dig up the new paving and then leave it for weeks, without actually doing anything and still allowing traffic through the new area. Canterbury manages to be a very success-


ful city with a bus station at one end and no through traffic, so why can’t Maidstone? Thank you again for supplying us allwith


such an excellent publication Jeanne Gibson, Birling Avenue, Bearsted


A hat-trick for Mote Park? Dear Sir – I was delighted to read (Mail Marks, July) that there is a real chance of county cricket returning to Maidstone now that The Mote Cricket Club has major pro- posals to regenerate the fading 100-year-old pavilion and facilities at the ground. They are needed to match the splendour


of this magnificent ground as well as to meet Kent Cricket’s requirement to return to Maidstone for county games, which were first held there in 1859. Cricketers have a chance of completing a wonderful hat trick at Mote Park. The council’s recentmajor improvements to the park itself have added so much to this treas- ure, and the Audley restoration of Mote House and surroundings as a retirement vil- lage has brought back to life a very sad and neglected area.


Marion James, Bearsted Gypsy plan to expand caravan site


A GYPSY has applied to put a third caravan on a site near Hadlow cemetery following the arrival of his grandchildren. The retrospective proposal


drew objections that itwas con- trary to Green Belt policy, inap- propriate development and that “Cemetery Lane needs to be maintained as an area of quiet contemplation in consideration of visitors to the cemetery”. Joseph Draper was given per- mission for one static caravan and one tourer on land behind the Harrow pub in Hadlow when he won a planning appeal in 2003. The decision established the family’s gypsy status and occu- pation of the site was restricted to Mr Draper, Ms B Botton and their four children, Sherry, Nicola, Crystal and Joe Jnr, then ranging in age from four to 15.


A second static caravan and a portable office building arrived three years later, and permis- sion was granted after council enforcement notices were over- turned at appeals in 2007. Tonbridge and Malling council-


lors were told that since then, the two eldest daughters had both had babies. The second static caravan, which they had shared, was no


longer large enough for them. An officer’s report said; “Un- doubtedly the third caravanwill have an impact on the openness of the Green Belt”, therefore very special circumstances wouldneedtobedemonstrated. Part of this case was that it


had already been accepted as a gypsy caravan site and to ac- commodate the family’s depen- dants.


Family loses appeal to stay on land A FAMILYwho set up an unauthorised caravan site at Drayhorse Meadow, Wateringbury, have had their final appeal rejected by the High Court. Ann Medhurst had obtained a judicial review after a planning inspector upheld Tonbridge and Malling’s refusal of permission for one mobile home, four touring caravans, utility rooms and hardstanding on former grazing land within the Green Belt. The inspector had ruled that the family had no overriding per-


sonal needs that justified them staying on the site on a perma- nent or temporary basis.


say Ofsted inspectors A SCHOOL for autistic youngsters has won Ofsted praise after undergoing major changes. Inspectors rated the Quest School at Ryarsh out- standing in all categories and noted high parental, carer and local authority satisfaction with its work. The report listedparents’ comments, including: “Fan-


tastic provision tailored to my child” and “My son’s confidence and self-esteem have risen dramatically”. Since its last inspection in 2009, the independent special school has increased its age range and now admits pupils aged from five to 19. It also moved from Church Road, Offham, to Roughetts Road and expanded its capacity to 25. Inspector Greg Sorrell said: “The Quest School


meets its aims very well. The curriculum and the quality of teaching and assessment have all im- proved since the last inspection and are now out- standing. Consequently, the pupils’ make outstanding progress. “The pupils’ behaviour and spiritual,moral, social and cultural development remain outstanding.”


28 Malling Siting the third mobile home


at Coldharbour in Aylesford would result in the fragmenta- tion of the family and could also be contrary to their human rights.


Residents were concerned


that another caravan would set a precedent for the adjoining site, which had recently been cleared of vegetation. An appli- cation had recently been sub- mitted for a gypsy family caravan on this land. However, the report said the neighbouring site was currently classed as agricultural land. Councillors were recom- mended to approve Mr Draper’s application, restricting the oc- cupancy of the site to those pre- viously named plus Sherry’s daughter Crystal, as well as Nicola’s daughter Lacey, and son Buddy.


Quest school outstanding, Villagers fear lorry disturbance


PROPOSALS for a haulage depot at the former Ryarsh Brickworks site have been criticised by villagers who com- plained about noisy lorries using the depot in the middle of the night. One resident logged the times of


HGVs passing her house over three months and said: “It is difficult to get a night’s sleep and we are worried about the new planning permission.” Retrospective plans to change the use


of the land in Roughetts Road from gen- eral industrial to storage and distribu- tion have been submitted to Tonbridge andMalling Council by Explore Living. The company had obtained permis-


sion for mixed use of the site for busi- ness and housing, but put these plans on hold until the market improves. At present the site is used by companies on short term leases. Ryarsh Parish Council called a meet-


ing to discuss the application when it heard complaints from residents about noise and speeding by lorries using the warehousing site. Residents were con- cerned that previously implied hours were not being complied with. One neighbour said trucks caused vi- brations in her house, similar to an earth tremor, and one such vehicle had passed at 2.26am one day. It was sug- gested that a vibration survey should be set up along Roughetts Road. The parish council said it had been reporting complaints of out of hours operations to the borough’s enforce- ment officers for many years. The parish supported the residents’ request for operating hours of 7am to 7pm, rather than the proposed 6am to 10pm, and asked for detailed noise, vi- brations and speed surveys to be car- ried out.


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