Verges left uncut


DownsMail In touch with your parish Bredhurst Council


ing, as more children needed the support of the care system. Cllr Terry Baker said tenders


A RESPONSE had been re- ceived to the parish council’s complaint that some grass verges were not cut on the last visit. Cllr Vanessa Jones would follow this up with Kent High- ways and request a meeting to resolve the problems. Council- lors would be pleased if any res- ident if any resident who noticed uncut grass verges con- tacted the clerk so that action can be taken as soon as possible. It was decided to pay some-


one to strim all of footpath KH49. Cllrs Jones and Nichola Carr would remove the empty tubes and canes installed to pro- tect the planting. It was suggested that a local


social enterprise company could be approached to see if they could provide assistance with tidying up the village at reasonable cost to the council. Cllr Carr would follow this up. Maidstone Council had re-


fusedtofundthe playground inspection training for council- lors. Four councillors agreed to undertake training so that weekly inspections could be un- dertaken without the need for Maidstone Council to carry out monthly ones. Further adjustments had been


made by Maidstone Council so that the aerial slide could be used again by young people. The annual inspection was


due shortly and it was agreed that Cllr Jones would ask Maria Cook, an independent inspec- tor, to undertake this. There was a discussion on the feasibility of having 20mph roundels painted on the road to remind motorists to drive slowly through the village. The cost of the 18 roundels would be almost £2,000. Before making a decision, it was decided to consult Kent Highways. As a result of the destruction


of wildlife habitat in Day Valley recently, a letter will be sent to theNational Grid expressing the council’s concern and request- ing assurances that this would not happen again. A resident had reported a high volume of loaded heavy lorries going along Kemsley Street Road. Acharity football event in aid


of Macmillan Cancer Support and the village hall would be held on July 27 on the playing field.


Officers re-elected


Broomfield and Kingswood Council


CLLR Terry Baker was re- elected as chairman and Cllr Mike O’Neill was re-elected as vice-chairman. KCC Cllr Jenny Whittle told members that KCC was into its third year of a tough savings regime, despite increased spend-


46 East


had been received from profes- sional planners to carry out the neighbourhood plan. Design- scape gave a presentation to the steering committee,who recom- mended that they be asked to carry out the work. Mike Evans and Peter Cor-


field retired from the parish council at the end of the meet- ing. The chairman thanked them for their hard work, and the clerk said they would be sorely missed.


Downswood Council Cars damaged


CLLR David Nuttall forwarded an email showing malicious damage to two cars in Longham Copse. The matter was reported to the police. Another huge lorry had been spotted at Mallards roundabout but it did not do any damage. It was believed to have come from Ireland. An increasing number of peo-


ple had been noticed picking up after dogs and then discarding the bagged waste in a public place. An article would be placed in the newsletter asking owners to dispose of waste in litter bins, if dog bins were not available. Cllr Gordon Newton had con-


tacted Maidstone Council with suggestions for their £250,000 underspend. They included Foxden Drive play area, village green status for the triangle of land close to the SSSI, informa- tion boards for the SSSI and Len Valley Nature Reserve, and de- silting Mallards Lake. Cllr Martin Weeks asked whether there was any news on the lorry signs for Spot Lane and Deringwood Drive. Cllr Gary Cooke was looking in to this. Aquote from Maidstone Fenc-


ing for £160 for work at Foxden Drive play area had been ac- cepted.


Maidstone Council had ad-


vised that lorries would be going through the play area to take soil to the woodland area for terracing work, due to a gar- den in Willington Street col- lapsing.


Complaints regarding com- mercial vehicles parking on the pavements had been investi- gated by police, and no action had been taken. The Christmas lights propos-


als from Gala Lights were con- sidered, and it was agreed that with the exception of theMerry Christmas garland, repairs would be carried out at a cost of £365. It was also agreed to ac- cept the offer from Gala to put aside filament bulbs already in their warehouse for use in mo- tifs, as there might be some dif- ficulty finding such bulbs in the future.


Harrietsham Council Road issues


CLLR Sams said the Court Lodge hole and road markings were being chased by Cllr Jenny Whittle. The issues with blocked drains at East Street and Fair- bourne Lane and the verge dam- age outside the almshouses had been referred to Craig Marsh by Ben Hilden, as he was the high- way steward for Harrietsham. The clerk reported that she


was awaiting a quotation for the bollards onWest Street. Cllr Oversby said there was a


pot hole appearing on the A20 outside Tenacre Court.The clerk offered to report this to Kent Highways. Cllr Morris said that, follow-


ing the decision not to remove the tree from the lake, further letters had been received from the complainant.Ameeting had taken place and the resident had been told that, unless there was amaterial change to the tree, the decision would not be altered. The finance and general pur-


poses committee had recom- mended that PAT testing equipment be bought for use at the village hall, including for the testing of all Remix equip- ment and the electrical equip- ment in the parish office. It was suggested that three quotes be obtained for the dis- posal of the Remix assets to en- sure best value for the parish council. The F&GP committee also rec- ommended that £200 be allo- cated to the Joint Parishes Group, to pay Harrietsham’s share of any work required by the group. All the above recommenda-


tions were agreed. Regarding Remix, Cllr Sams


said Warhammer was still not running, as more volunteers were needed. The film club had gone well and people had been impressed with the new screen. Cllr Sams said the housing as- sociation contact list had now been compiled and this item could be removed from the agenda. Cllr Taylor said that, follow-


ing the village hall trust annual meeting, the group had no spe- cific chairman and the commit- tee was seeking volunteers. Members heard the hall and


Booth Field were to be used for the Big Lunch picnic. Barbecues were discouraged. Cllr Morris said that at a re-


cent history society meeting an offer had been made to make a geophysical survey of the Glebe Field, free of charge. All coun- cillors were in favour of this work being carried out. It was agreed to renew the an-


nual subscription to KALC,ata cost of £599.70 plus VAT. Cllr Morris said the annual


subscription to ACRK was usu- ally split with the village hall trust at a cost of £32.50 each. It was agreed that this should be renewed.


Lighting concern


Hollingbourne Council


ITWAS resolved to continue to withhold payment for the inter- active speed camera while the impasse regarding street light- ing continues. Cllr John Cobbett was to meet with Cllr Jenny Whittle and representatives of KCC and Kent Highways and would make it clear that the parish council would be happy to pay for the camera installa- tion when the matter was re- solved. The council said they felt “pushed around” by both Maid- stone Council regarding the withdrawal of funding and KCC, who were only now de- claring that the lamp columns did not comply with set dis- tances within a 30mph zone. Cllr Adam Ward had spoken


with a pond expert from Maid- stone Council regarding the state of the Millennium Green pond and weed growth. The pond would be managed with- out chemicals to promote a bio- diverse environment. The first stage would be to clear some, but not all of the weeds. The quality of the water was said to be good. Any volunteers for wet and muddy activity should con- tact CllrWard. CllrWard said he intended to


apply for planning permission to install a new noticeboard as it would be within the conser- vation area. The chairman asked for some-


one to take up the role of coun- cil member responsible for footpaths and public rights of way. Cllr Ursula Askew volun- teered. Cllr Bedwell read a letter he


had received from the pre- school in which they expressed dissatisfaction with the cleanli- ness of the Cardwell pavilion. Members agreed that every hirer had a duty to keep the pavilion clean and this was not the sole responsibility of a cleaner. The only other option would be to hire a contract cleaner after each period of hire, the costs being passed on to the hirer.However, the cleaning agreement would be reviewed and a revised cleaning schedule drawn up if necessary. Cllr Bedwell moved on to the proposed development of Wa- terside Park. He pointed out that “new jobs” would be relo- cations. He urged residents to read the


recent article in the Downs Mail on this matter, and agreed with the sentiment that questioned the need to use farmland for such a development.


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