Rotary awards


for town trio THERotaryClub ofMaidstonehas awarded its top honour – the Paul Harris Fellowships – to three members for services to Rotary and the local community. They are (from left) incoming


club president and retired lawyer Colin Trelfer, of Boughton Monchelsea; past president and chairman of Age UK Maidstone Pat Thomas, of Barming;and past president and former Maidstone police area commander Roger Hext, of Bearsted.


Crash deaths a tragic accident,


says coroner A YOUNG driver who had just passed her test died along with her Lenham boyfriend when the car she was driving left the road, an inquest heard. Amy Clark (17) might have swerved to miss an animal on the A20 Maidstone Road at Charing, police said, although they could not confirm the cause. The Ford Fiesta veered left


while going round a right hand bend, went down a bank and hit a tree on December 29 last year.


Amy, from Willesborough, Ashford, who had passed her test just nine days earlier, died from multiple injuries. A passer-by called 999, but


the engineering student was al- ready dead by the time emer- gency services arrived. Her boyfriend, 20-year old Rob Wiltshire, from Payden Street, Maidstone, was unconscious and later died from his injuries. In evidence, PC David Kirk


said no faults were found with thecar.BothAmy andRob,a former pupil at Swadelands School who had just qualified as an electrical engineer, had been wearing seatbelts and there was no suggestion she had been speeding. Deputy assistant coroner Rachel Redman recorded a ver- dict of accidental death on both victims. She said: “This is a tragic accidental death involv- ing two very young people.”


MISS SAIGON by Valley Park School at The Hazlitt Theatre


Inner Wheel’s


new president THE new president of the Inner Wheel Club of Maidstone is Elizabeth Hext (pictured right), of Bearsted. Elizabeth,


who was vice presi- dent last year, is the wife of for- mer Maidstone police area commander Roger Hext.


McDonalds tries again


MCDONALD’s has made an- other attempt to build a drive- through restaurant in central Maidstone. The fast-food giant has re- turned with a revamped pro- posal to build a 130-seater restaurant on the corner of The Broadway and Barker Road, on the site of the former Renault dealership, after a similar scheme was refused in April. Maidstone Council felt the scheme would have caused noise and disturbance and ad- versely affected air quality. As a result McDonald’s has changed the layout of the restaurant, with it now proposed to be lo- cated along the northern bound- ary of the site. A supporting statement said:


ARCHBISHOP Courtenay Church of England Primary School is continuing to progress towards the removal of special measures, its latest Ofstedmon- itoring inspection found. Some pupils are starting to


make better progress, the report said. However, about two thirds are not making up lost ground quickly enough. Some teaching is improving


and inspectors said: “A small but increasing proportion of teachers have very high expec- tationsofwhatpupilscan achieve and provide inspira- tional lessons where tasks and activities are pitched at the right level for different groups.”


“The re-orientation of the cus- tomer area and patio in relation to the town centre and neigh- bouring residents allows further glazing to the building, aiding in the provision of a ‘street frontage’ as requested by the council.” Further changes include the location of the bin store “within an enclosed area away from lo- cations where they could be perceived to have an adverse impact on neighbours”. The statement added: “Safety barriers have been included in potential conflict areas within the development, separating ve- hicles and pedestrians.” Cllr Malcolm Greer told the


town centre business forum that the current economy meant few projects were able to proceed


Inadequate school ‘improving’ Most pupils are well-behaved,


the report noted, although in a few lessons behaviour is still poorly managed. Senior leaders and the Interim Executive Board were praised for their monitoring of progress and management of the changes. The school, in Eccleston


Road, Tovil, was placed in spe- cial measures in November after an Ofsted inspection found it to be inadequate – grade 4. Special measures means the school is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and those in charge of the school are not demonstrating the ability to make improvements.


IF YOU missed this show, you missed one of the very best shows I have seen at The Ha- zlitt in the past years. The chorus was disciplined


yet creative. The students in this huge group did not put a step wrong. Whether theywere desperately trying to get on the last helicopter to leave Saigon or tramping on to the stage as Ho Chi Minh’s troops, they were a veritable masterclass in


34 Town


School’s musical a great success JOHN


MUNSON SHOW TIME


how a chorus should be. The principals were equally amazing. Samantha Sharpe, as Kim, had the voice of an angel and a powerfully convincing acting ability. Cree Rose Young was the ultimate immoral scal- lywag, whose energy and voice


created The Engineer. Aaron Frith, as Chris, was utterly be- lievable as the boy next door, a victim of war. Chomba Taulo as John; Nicol Kakel as Ellen; BenAnderton as Thuy,were all fine contributors to this per- formance. All 49 members of the cast


listed in the programme con- tributed to this musical's suc- cess. Giles Gleadall was the brilliant director. Great sets and costumes, greatmusicians, and a great show.


Visit Downs Mail’s website — downsmail.co.uk


without “enabling” funds from a large chain or a superstore and he said McDonalds was “a good enabling company”. However, Cllr Greer said any planning consent would in- clude a condition that the com- pany had to commit to cleaning up rubbish left within a half- mile radius of the restaurant.He said: “As money becomes more stretched, we cannot go around cleaning up people’s rubbish – they will have to do it them- selves.” Town Centre Manager Bill


Moss told the forum: “A Mc- Donalds drive-through could be quite a nice addition to the town.”


Maidstone Councilwill deter- mine the planning application.


Samaritans in appeal for


volunteers MORE good Samaritans are being sought to help Maid- stone’s biggest listening service. The Samaritans, founded in London in 1953 by Chad Varah, help someone in the UK every six seconds. But, as pressures on daily life increase, the number of calls the service receives is rising, and more volunteers are needed. Maidstone andWeald Samar-


itans has 80 volunteers, provid- ing a listening service to people in distress around the clock. Will Merrifield, director of Maidstone and Weald Samari- tans, in Grecian Street, said: “We need more volunteers to train as listeners or to support us in what we do. Our team are local people who have a shared vision about helping others.” Volunteers receive training


and are asked to give four hours a week, including a night shift once a month. Anyone interested should


email recruitment@maidstone- samaritans.org or write to Will Merrifield at 48 Grecian Street, Maidstone ME14 2TS giving some basic information. Alternatively, telephone


01622674444orjustcallinto the office.


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