DownsMail In touch with your parish Continued from page 35


map on a board would be a use- ful aid when locations were being discussed. Cllr Turner said a building


had been erected on Petsfield at Eastwood Road, without plan- ning permission. The clerk had reported this to the planning en- forcement department and had received a letter of acknowl- edgement. Since then, more families had been seen moving in.


Cllr Ron Galton reported on


the water supply problems and said South EastWater was satis- fying all legal requirements. It was believed work may have been done on the valves since the barn fire, and it seemed that pressure had been improved, al- though this may have been down to the system being flushed after the opening of the hydrants. Cllr Galton was to suggest a four-yearly flushing of the hydrants to SEWater.


Play equipment MARIA Cook had inspected the playground, and said although the equipment was old, there were no high risk areas but the surface needed attention.Maria agreed to help with the refur- bishment, working to a given budget. She recommended a sign be put at the entrance to the fenced play area stating the in- tended ages and banning dogs. The borough council’s com- munity development team said the Royal Engineers were look- ing for projects, and this would be worth investigating. Money might be available


Bredhurst Council


from borough councillors’ mem- ber’s funds for relevant projects. It was suggested that Kent High- ways be invited to the village to get support for any projects. Councillors were asked to sub- mit ideas for consideration, and the surfacing of the KH49 bri- dlepath was suggested. All councillors had seen the


newKent Code of Conduct,and it was agreed to accept it. The meeting heard the borough council had refused a change of use application from Bredhurst Juniors so that the football pitch could by used by adults. The extra telegraph pole in


Dunn Street Road had been re- moved, but the remaining stump was said to be a health and safety issue. KCC was liais- ing with BT which was taking responsibility. Cllr Charlie Hewitt attended


the Core Strategy meeting and said no new housing was planned for Bredhurst. Garden sacks were being phased out, and will not be col- lected after the end of June 2013. There will also be changes as to what will be ac- cepted at householdwaste sites,


50 East


and a notice had been put on the main notice board. Cllr Surridge was working on


the next edition of the newslet- ter and any articles should be submitted by December 1. It was suggested that discussion was needed as to the format, content and frequency of the newsletter.


Broomfield and Kingswood Council


PCSO review


IT WAS reported that Kent Po- lice was reconsidering the role of PCSOs. Councillors dis- cussed the options to put for- ward at the next police forum meeting. PCSO Richard Kirby reported


on the crime figures. There had been a theft from a vehicle in Kingswood, and a burglary at- tempt, and a burglary in Lenham Road. There had been a theft in Ul- combe and a case of criminal damage in Langley. There were two thefts, a case


of criminal damage, a car theft and a theft from a vehicle in Sutton Valence. Cllr Mike Evans said he had attended an initial meeting of the Neighbourhood Watch area committee. The clerk had contacted the


group Scout leader to say that the council could not offer fi- nancial support for the Scout hutmakeover and had repeated the offer of paint. The development control offi-


cer at the borough council had said there were no objections to the proposed tree works at the sports field. Despite phone calls and emails it appeared that Digley Associates had not carried out the annual RoSPA safety in- spection. The clerkwas to chase this up and inform the insurers. Matt Hendy from Maidstone Mavericks was intending to line mark the pitch. Cllr Peter Corfield had in- formed DEFRA of the council’s intention to withdraw from the combined parishes’ application for super-fast broadband.He had also discussed the matter with Leeds Castle, and had spo- ken with V-Fast, which had re- cently supplied broadband to Lenham. He was to continue to make inquiries about alternative sources of faster broadband. Cllr Baker said a letter about neighbourhood planning had been printed by the borough council and circulated in Kingswood and Broomfield. It was agreed that the council would continue to publish the Kingswood and Broomfield News from January 2013. There were outstanding issues regarding finance and advertis- ing. The clerk was to notify the editors.


Parking problems Detling Council


THE meeting noted that the issue of parking at Hockers Lane was still being handled by County Councillor Jenny Whit- tle. It was reported that an acci- dent involving three cars had occurred in that area three weeks ago. It was agreed that the clerk would liaise with Cllr Whittle to discuss the matter. A resident raised concerns


about a planning application for a property in Hockers Lane. Shewas concerned about the lo- cation of the door of the pro- posed extension. She said she had contacted the borough council and asked the parish council to take this matter into consideration. The clerk presented the finan-


cial statement to members. It was proposed by Cllr Christo- pher Evernden and seconded by Cllr Mike Denny. It was reported that Cllr Janice Kennard had applied to the Forestry Commission for a grant of £1,000 to undertake a man- agement plan for HorishWood. Cllr Evernden had attended a


site meeting with SE Water at HorishWood. He explained the situation regarding the ease- ments and right to access the land to renew the pipes. He con- firmed that the removal of the oak tree would be avoided if at all possible. The clerk said CTRL would attend a site meeting to discuss the need for a mobility gate.It was agreed they would discuss the matter with JohnMonk. John Monk told the meeting


he still had two benches to be installed in the woodland at Monks Meadow, and asked members to consider locations for these. The clerk circulated a report


to all members regarding the re- quirement of the Localism Act and the need to adopt a new code of conduct. Members con- sidered the NALC Model Code of Conduct and the KentModel Code of Conduct. Cllr Denny proposed adoption of the Kent Code of Conduct. This was sec- onded by Cllr Evernden and agreed by all present. The clerk referred to the reso-


lution to go ahead with the pur- chase of three parcels of land in Hockers Lane from CTRL. She said she had the transfer papers to sign and these were passed to the chairman for signing. Cllr Irene Bowie reported on


the arrangements for the parish council open day, and it was agreed this would take place on September 15.


Anonymous mail THE chairman Cllr Mike Bed-


Hollingbourne Council


To contact Downs Mail just phone 01622 630330


well reported that the clerk had received an unsigned email and reiterated that the parish coun- cil would not accept anony- mous communications. A concerned resident had re- ported unauthorised cars parked on the Lance Memorial Field. Clamps had now been fixed to the bars clearly in- tended to prohibit parking. The chairman and two coun- cillors had attended a Joint Parish Group meeting concern- ing proposed development at Junction 8 of the M20. Three potential areas were identified for development – Woodcut Farm; opposite the Biffa site and at Detling aero- drome. The general feeling was that Detling aerodrome was the best option with an additional traffic system, such as a round- about, which would also im- prove access to the Kent Showground. The need for additional of-


fices and workshops had appar- ently been identified, although there had been no satisfactory explanation why the unused premises already in existence, for example at Park Wood and Aylesford, could not be used. Cllr Frank Stephenson re- ported he had spent three days at Harrietsham, learning how it had been selected by the bor- ough council as a rural devel- opment centre, involving the whole village in planning pro- posals.


Although the Localism Bill


gives councils more weight in decisions affecting their com- munities, it would appear that the borough would still hold sway. It was resolved to involve Navigus Planning in facilitating a neighbourhood plan for Hollingbourne. Country Eye, a rural equiva-


lent of NeighbouhoodWatch, is now operating inHollingbourne andmembership is free. Further details from Suzanne Daniell at Maidstone police station, on 01622 604395. Cllr John Cobbett reported on


the Fete 2012 debrief and con- firmed that the band had been booked for next year. The tables borrowed from the school went to another lender and the school had complained that they were dirty on their return. The chairman pointed out


that was why parish equipment should be purchased, as much as possible, as well as cutting down on transport costs.


Leeds Council Road changes


THE new road layout at the school had been completed and was a clear safety enhancement. The 20mph speed limit signs would be in place shortly. After previously agreeing to provide build-outs at both ends


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