Summer fair VISITORS will get a chance to see the refurbishments to Mote House, Mote Park, on Septem- ber 7, when Audley Mote throws open its doors to host a charity Summer Fair. There will be a variety of
stalls selling local produce, as well as the chance to dine in theMote House Bistro. Entry to the fair is free, but donations are welcome for Macmillan Cancer Support. For further information, including how to reserve a stall, call 01622 737279.
Focus on poetry AYLESARA will meet in the Aylesford Community Centre at 2pm on Thursday, August 29, for a talk by Marian Martin en- titled Humour In Verse. Members can also find out
what outings are available and book a place on the next week- end break in November. For more details, contact Wayne on 01622 710734.
Scout help needed ALLINGTON Scout Group is appealing to anyone who is in- terested in becoming a Scout leader or helper. Training and mentoring will
be provided. Anyone who is in- terested should contact group Scout leader Tony Giles on 07846 600953 or email tony-
giles110@btinternet.com.
Cash gifts ‘could kill beggars’
A HIGH-profile poster and sticker campaign has been taking place in Maidstone to help clear the town of its unwanted “street population”. The campaign – “Your kindness could kill” –
was developed some 10 years ago by Thames Reach, a London charity which helps the home- less and vulnerable, and is designed to show how cash given to street beggars can all too often pro- long their misery, as it is used to fund further al- cohol and substance abuse. Posters have gone up around the town centre
and in buses, with supplementary stickers in some of the main street shops, to hammer the message home that kind-hearted shoppers should not give cash to those begging in the streets. Addressing Maidstone’s Business Forum, the council’s Katie Latchford said: “The term ‘street population’ covers several different cohorts. Some are beggars, some street drinkers and oth- ers rough sleepers. “By giving money to them, people who think
they are performing an act of kindness are, in re- ality, prolonging their time on the street.” Katie said the council, which had managed to identify permanent suitable accommodation for 50% of those sleeping rough earlier in the year, was not wanting to discourage people from giv- ing – just to channel their donations into more ap- propriate areas. She said the council had been workingwith the police, Porchlight and the Maidstone Day Centre, as well as drug and alcohol charities, to help the street population and had experienced a high level of success. She said: “We do notwant to stop people giving
– but ask them to go online and donate to Porch- light or the day centre, which need funds to pro- vide food and shelter for the truly vulnerable people.”
JohnWilson with the poster urging shoppers to direct their donations to charities
Katie added: “People who are truly homeless
are often hidden, sleeping in cars or sofa-surfing. These are the people who need our help. Quite a number of beggars are not homeless and we are working with the police to address this issue.” But she said: “A lot of these people have com-
plex substance and alcohol issues.We are not say- ing ‘do not help’ – merely ‘do it differently’.” Town Centre Manager Bill Moss, who has been concerned at the growing numbers of people on the streets in the past six months, said: “We are 100% behind this project and will do all we can to assist.”
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