Owner outrage as police free intruder


WHEN a sleeping Tim Ferris was stirred by noises in the night, he was shaken. But when police let off the would-be burglar he trapped in his porch, the 53-year old estate agent was incensed. Mr Ferris, who lives in Thurnham Lane, Bearsted, and has offices in Bearsted and Pe- nenden Heath, was awakened from his slumbers by the bark- ing of his seven-year old black labrador, Sparky. On closer in- vestigation, he found a man try- ing to force the inner door of his back porch. Throwing on some clothes,


Mr Ferris nipped out of a side door and ran round to the back, locking the intruder inside the porch. He then dialled 999 and waited for the police to turn up. On what was one of the cold-


est mornings of the year, Mr Ferris shivered in sub-zero tem- peratures with snow falling around him for almost 30 min- utes – but didn’t let up his vigil. And when police arrived,


they arrested the 40-year old in- truder and threw him in the cells overnight. Imagine, then, the business-


man’s surprise to be told that the man had been released the following morning, without any charges being brought. “First they tried to tell me


Baby born on


packed train A YOUNG woman gave birth to ababygirlonapackedcom- muter train atWest Malling. Sonia Banks, 22, went into labour shortly after boarding the 6.18pm service from Lon- don Victoria to Ashford Inter- national at Borough Green on March 7. An off-duty midwife and


nurse responded to train driver Rob Friend’s plea for help, and assisted until emergency serv- ices arrived. An off-duty police officer helped clear the carriage to give the mum-to-be, her part- ner Allan Stanley, 21, and his mother Mari-Anne Stanley, some privacy. Baby Phoebe was born just 30 minutes after Ms Banks’ con- tractions started. She weighed 6lb 13oz and was born a week early. A Southeastern spokesman


said both mum and baby were doing well after the birth and the train company sent Ms Banks flowers and tweeted a congratulatory message. Conductor Colin Brooker


said: “We had everyone we needed right there on the train. We were only missing a vicar to baptise the baby! I kept all the passengers on board informed about the delay, and there was a big cheer when we announced the baby had been born.”


24 Town Tim Ferris in his back porch


that the man had been drunk – but he didn’t appear drunk to me,” said Mr Ferris. “Then they said it was a mistake, and the man had been trying to get into the wrong house. How? By shouldering the door? Surely, a normal person would use a key.” To get to Mr Ferris’ detached property, the intruder would first have had to scale an elec- tric five-barred gate and cross an expanse of gravel drive be- fore heading round to the back of the house – not the most ob- vious door to use. “That seems to be an awful


lot of trouble for someone who has gone to the wrong house,”


said Mr Ferris, “especially when it transpired the man came from Tenterden.” It was around 3am when po-


lice left the scene and a chilled and shaken Mr Ferris, who had been wearing only a tracksuit and slippers, was able to return to bed. He offered to give police a statement, but due to the late- ness of the hour, they suggested it should wait until the follow- ing morning. Mr Ferris said: “They said


they were about to go off duty and someone would come the following morning, but nobody did. Then someone rang me from the station and said they were releasing the man because he hadn’t been doing anything. Iwas furious and said Iwanted to give a statement. So they said they would come and take one – but, again, nobody did. “The whole thingwas farcical.


If the man claimed to be drunk, why didn’t they breath-test him and charge him with being drunk and disorderly? If he was- n’t drunk, why wasn’t he charged with attempted bur- glary? “If he was supposed to be


going to a party nearby, whose party was it? They don’t seem to have asked too many questions of him. It doesn’t look as though anybodywas really interested in


the case apart from me.” Police have now launched a


full investigation into the inci- dent. A spokesman said: “Po- lice were called to an address in Thurnham Lane, Bearstead, in the early hours of February 23. A man was arrested at the scene, but was later released without charge. A complaint has subsequently been received and is being handled by the force’s professional standards department. “Following the complaint,


we are carrying out a full re- view of the incident. It is ab- solutely untrue to suggest that people are getting away with crime because we don’t have sufficient resources to respond to incidents and crimes in progress. We have officers available around the clock to respond to crimes and take the appropriate action.” Mr Ferris said: “What is the


point in trying to protect your home and property if would-be burglars are let off scot-free? It makes me wonder why I stood out in the snow all that time for nothing to come of it – and what would have happened had he broken into my house?” The police spokesman added:


“We will be working with Mr Ferris to resolve his dissatisfac- tion with the service he re- ceived.”


School ‘needs to improve further’


OFSTED inspectors who went to Barming Primary school found that although it hadmade some changes since its last in- spection, it still required im- provement. Teaching was not strong enough for pupils to make con- sistent progress throughout the school, and although progress was now checked frequently, in the past, information had not been used well enough, so some pupils still had gaps in their un- derstanding.


A MAIDSTONE taxi driver and his passenger died and a teenager was seriously hurt in a three-car collision near Staple- hurst.


Officers from Kent Police’s se-


rious collision investigation unit were called in to investi- gate the accident, on Cranbrook Road, Knoxbridge, on the evening of Tuesday,March 5. Grandfather Brian Maitland


(63), from Loose and his female passenger (47), also from the Maidstone area, were pro- nounced dead at the scene and an 18-year-old woman, travel- ling in the back of the red Vaux- hall Vectra, had serious injuries. Mr Maitland’s family said: “Brian was a loving husband,


Mathematics standards were improving quickly because teaching of the subject had been strengthened. Teachers were found to be developing their skills in other subjects, but some lessons still required im- provement. Attainment in read- ing, writing and mathematics was average, but attainment was lower in writing. Leaders andmanagers had in- troduced a number of policies, including for handwriting and presentation, but these were not


father and grandpa. He was a keen gardener, and an active member of the Foresters Friendly Society. Happiest spending time with his family and friends, he will be forever missed.” Mr Maitland leaves a wife, Linda, and two sons. A post mortem was due to take place as Downs Mail went to press. The drivers of the other two


cars involved, a Maidstone man in his 40s who was driving a Chrysler and a woman in her mid-40s from the Maidstone area who was driving a Ford Galaxy, were treated for minor injuries. A two-mile section of Cran-


brook Road was closed for foren- sic examination


being used in all classes. The inspectors found teachers


did not always expect enough of pupils during lessons, and if work was finished quickly, fol- low-up work was not suffi- ciently challenging. Marking did not always tell pupils how they could improve. However, pupils were found


to behave well and feel safe in school. Reading was promoted well across the school, and pupils enjoyed reading in the class libraries.


Two dead in three-car crash Childcare good


CHILDMINDER Margaret Cun- ningham was found by Ofsted inspectors to be offering a good service from her home in St Francis Close, Penenden Heath. Children’s progress across all


areas of learning was good, ac- tivities challenged children, and the childminder’s clear view of her strengths and areas for development enabled her to improve her provision and maintain high standards. Parents were enthusiastic


about the care of their children, and received daily reports on what their child had achieved. To improve her rating, Ms Cunningham was encouraged to improve the display and stor- age of toys so that children had better access to them.


You can e-mail the Downs Mail — info@downsmail.co.uk


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