DownsMail In touch with your parish


Boughton Malherbe Council


Footpath work


THE clerk said the footpath conditions at Judge Farm and Broadstone Cottage had been re- ported by KeithAnderson and a public rights of way rep had or- dered the necessary works to be carried out. PCSO Alan Beech said there


had been no crimes reported for the parish. The Speedwatch team had


been out a couple of times this year, but had handed the equip- ment back to Lenham. It was de- cided to make enquiries about borrowing a redundant unit. The police had contacted Cllr


Jenny Whittle saying they wished to remove the speed check sign. For the sign to be on display, there had to be four po- lice checks per year, at a cost of nearly £1,000 a year. It was pointed out the police had never come to check the local Speed- watch in operation, which they had said they would do. A choice had to be made: ei-


ther police speed checks or in- stallation of HGV restriction signage. It was pointed out that HGVrestrictions on Liverton Hill could just shunt the problem to Boughton Hill and other local roads. The Headcorn to Lenham road was the only one without HGV signage in the area. It was decided that the inter-


active sign did slow drivers down, but it was not known how long for. There had been no response regarding proximity to the road. Richard Emmett said he would contact Ben Hilden and recommend it be tweaked or moved. He said the solar panel was too close to the road edge for high-sided vehicles. Flooding signs had been erected at Crumps Lane Corner, butone hadbeenhit.Ithad been reported and would be re- sited. The ditches and gullies had been inspected and there was insufficient drainage. It was proposed that increasing the culvert might cure the problem. Work had been carried out on ditches and gullies in Wood- cock Lane and was continuing. Thiswould be blitzed in June or July, when Liverton Hill was closed. All roadswere due to be cleansed then so problems should be reported before then. Cllr Robert Turner said Liver-


ton Hill was a patchwork quilt of repairs, with a huge hole at the bottom. It was suggested that double dressing ormicro-surfac- ing would restore the surface. The camber was wrong at the bottom of the hill, resulting in lying water. Richard Emmett said they would inspect it again and Katie Lewis said shewould prepare a report for the next meeting. The weather had not been


54 East


good enough to carry out re- pairs at Elmstone Lane,and this needed to be looked at. A parishioner had asked about


a road sign for Coach Road. There was one at the Egerton end, but there had never been one in Boughton Malherbe. No- body was prepared to take re- sponsibility and funds were not available. Richard Emmettwas to forward a contact with a view to getting it done. Cllr Ron Galton said the emer-


gency plan group had enough in- formation to start listing facilities and people who could help. There was a massive amount of paperwork. Sources of water for the fire service would be listed in case hydrants ran out. Sean Charlton had given permission for his reservoir to be used in the case of an emergency. Cllr Tony King said a group


had been formed to look at a neighbourhood plan. A confer- ence was attended by three councillors and there had been a talk at Grafty Green village hall. A plan would take a great deal of time and money and there was more research to do. The next step was to engage with Maidstone Council. The new bus timetable had started, with an extra service going back in to Maidstone in the afternoon, instead of run- ning back empty. Cllrs Turner and Galton had


met with Jamie Clark to discuss the Queen Elizabeth yew tree. Cllr Galton said drilling under the walls was necessary to see why there was movement and ensure there was adequate drainage. KCC Cllr Richard Thick warned about oil thefts, which were happening again. Cllr Mike Hitchins said the budget had been prudently set on the basis that the parish serv- ices scheme would allow noth- ing. However, the council had been allocated almost £1,000. It was agreed that the council would join the Campaign to Pro- tect Rural England, which pro- vided support in planning matters as well as advice and as- sistance with neighbourhood planning, for £29 per year.


Bredhurst Council No crimes


THE PCSO said no crimes had been recorded in March. A resi- dent said he had reported the registration number of someone sitting in a vehicle in Kemsley Street Road shooting pheasants. There were 25 residents who wanted to receive the Downs Mail and Jim Chalmers had compiled a distribution list. He asked for a meeting with the clerk to finalise distribution. It was suggested a signing-up list be available at the annual vil- lage meeting inMay. Maidstone Council had said


they stood by their risk assess- ment of the aerial slide, despite the report from independent playground inspector Maria Cook, who said it was a low risk. It was decided to send a formal complaint to Maidstone Council about the poor quality and in- consistencies in their reports. As a result of the new dog ex- clusion orders, the parish coun- cil should have a sign saying dogs were not allowed in the fenced area of the playground. Cllr Nichola Carr was to quote for a suitable sign. There was a discussion on


speed limits in the village.The clerk was awaiting a response from Kent Highways about the possibility of having painted roundels on the road to remind motorists of the 20mph zone. A number of options on street


lights were discussed. This could involve removing the old lights attached to telegraph poles to standardise lighting in the vil- lage. The old lamp post outside Manor Farmwas considered un- necessary as there was a new light by the build-out. A number of potholes had


been reported to Kent High- ways. They had been temporar- ily repaired and would be permanently repaired in April. The annual meeting will be


called Bredhurst Information Day and would be held at Bred- hurst School on May 18. Village clubs had been invited to at- tend, and the PCSO would also be attending. The parish coun- cil would have an information desk for residents, and refresh- ments would be available. A further meeting was needed to finalise arrangements.


Broomfield and Kingswood Council


Vacancy filled


CHRISTINA Clark was co- opted to fill the vacancy on the parish council. The councilwas now up to full strength. County Cllr Jenny Whittle


said a resident had complained about the Swadelands School bus service drop-off and collec- tion point which had changed with a new contractor. Cllr Whittle had contacted the de- partment responsible for school transport and was asking for the bus point to revert to the origi- nal location. PCSO Richard Kirby advised


that recruitment for an addi- tional PCSO was in progress and hoped his area of responsi- bility would be returned to the original four parishes soon. PCSO Kirby was asked to con-


sider recommendations for traf- fic calming around the village in readiness for a meeting with KCC Highways. A meeting had been arranged with Ben Hilden. Cllr Mike O’Neill raised ongo-


ing concerns regarding the man- ner of people parking around


the primary school and re- quested that PCSO Kirby and team approach parents and ad- vise them accordingly. The pensioners’ trip had been arranged for June 25 for a river trip including lunch. Each par- ticipant would be asked for £10 towards the cost,with places re- served on a first come, first served basis. The clerk advised that Mary Poultonwas happy to help manage the trip. The annual parish meeting


was being held on May 20. Efforts to improve broadband


had been initiated by John Cob- bett, writing to Hugh Robertson MP. He had written to the CEO of BT to ask for the issues raised at the meeting at Leeds Castle. A further approach to the problem was being studied, to- gether with the other two parishes looking at working with CallFlow wireless broad- band, potentially siting a trans- mitter on the Downs above Hollingbourne, receiving sig- nals from Boughton Malherbe. Thecostingslookedasifthis might work, involving the three parishes sharing the initial costs. More work was being done on this idea and would be reported to the next meeting. The Edmed family had given


their approval to limited devel- opment on the Triangle Field between Chartway Street, Duck- pond Lane and Gravelly Bottom Road.


Maidstone Council had ap- pealed to the public for sites for development, and two within the parish had been identified. The annual RoSPA safety


check for the recreation and sports field was booked with Playdale for the first week in July.


The clerk had asked Kent Highways why the large potholes in Broomfield Road had never been repaired, despite two work orders being submitted.


Flooding problem THE meeting heard there was still a problem with flooding on Hermitage Lane. The clerk was asked to for-


Detling Council


mally accept the quotation for the Southern Water works at HorishWood. The roles and responsibilities


of parish councillors were dis- cussed by members. Cllr Mark Housden had told members he wished to stand down from the planning committee. It was agreed that Cllr John Clayton would join the planning commit- tee and Cllr Chris Evernden would chair it with Cllr Clayton. It was also agreed that Cllr Griffiths would take over as the police liaison representative. Mr Dale attended the meeting


and spoke regarding planning matters and the role of the plan- ning committee. Cllr Janice


You can e-mail the Downs Mail — info@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  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56