Plan consultation AROUND 100 people attended a workshop and consultation event on the neighbourhood plan. There was a lot of useful input from the Designscape team and residents. Design- scape and members from the steering group were due to meet with Michael Murphy, planning officer at Maidstone Council, to outline the out- comes of the consultation. The clerk had forwarded a second letter to Ann Barnes, Kent Police Commissioner, as councillors had requested, in- cluding a timeline regarding anti-social behaviour experi- enced in Kingswood in the summer months. There had been no reply to date. KCC warden Dawn Riach- Brown said she would be deliv- ering letters with the clerk about overgrown hedges to en- sure that any elderly or vulner- able people get the help they may need. A group of residents ap- proached the clerk requesting the placing of a bininthe sports field with plastic bag in- serts that they would empty voluntarily. CllrWest proposed that the parish council pilots one bin adjacent to the Playdale and picnic area. Thiswas unan- imously agreed. The latest Maidstone Council
Broomfield and Kingswood Council
safety report showed that the seat on the leg press had come adrift and needed replacing, as it was a finger trap. Councillors unanimously agreed that this should be ordered immediately. Cllr Baker expressed concern
at the loose rotten log step in the Playdale area. Councillors agreed that the replacement of all necessary items identified in the annual safety should go ahead as soon as possible. The clerk was requested to
write to the Scout group and Maidstone Mavericks to deter- mine whether they had investi- gated any funding potential for a pavilion/sports hall at the sports field. Councillors discussed recom- mended locations for the inter- active signs and the lorry signs and agreed that the clerk should contact KCC Cllr Jenny Whittle to finalise prices and organise a site visit by engi- neers.
Charlie Reynolds, transport engineer at KCC, advised that the street nameplate in Ash- ford Drive would be repaired. He requested any evidence of parking problems be forwarded to him pending a site visit. Councillors agreed that the viability of hiring a handyman for the parish would be dis- cussed as part of setting the precept for 2014/15.
34 South
DownsMail In touch with your parish Cllr Clark had received inter-
est for a garden club scheme within the parish. Itwas agreed there would be more informa- tion in the next village news and on the parish website to encourage more participants. Ulcombe was considering supplying a limited transport service to Headcorn and re- quested Broomfield and Kingswood Parish Council par- ticipate in the project. Council- lors agreed that a service to Headcorn could prove useful as there was no such service cur- rently and would not under- mine the current bus service. A group of seven men were spotted acting suspiciously at Gravelly Bottom Lane.
Pool damaged
Chart Sutton Council
PCSO Richard Kirby reported the crime figures, which in- cluded three cases of criminal damage to the swimming pool at Sutton Valence Primary School, a theft and a burglary. Measures had been put in place to prevent any further damage to the swimming pool. There had been a complaint
from a parishioner about speed- ing cars in Amber Lane and Warmlake Road, and a request for a speed ramp in Warmlake Road. Cllr Peter Forknall said that as the road was a bus route, a speed ramp would not be per- mitted. Cllr Paul Ward sug- gested rumble strips. The clerk was asked to write to Kent Po- lice to ask for suggestions. The meeting heard that the
glass in the noticeboards was in a poor state, making it difficult to read the notices. It was noted that some of the boards needed refurbishing,with new Perspex, and the village hall noticeboard needed one of the doors repair- ing. Cllr Steven Waring agreed to investigate further. It was suggested that Ben Fleck and his colleagues might carry out the work. Members considered the an-
nual play area inspection and it was noted that there was ad- vanced decay on the base of the small multi-unit and a hole was now visible. The clerk was asked to investigate when it was installed and the name of the manufacturer. It was agreed that no other work was neces- sary at this stage. The clerkwas asked to provide a copy of the report to insurers. There had been a complaint
about overhanging branches on the trees on the village green. CllrWaring had already pruned the silver birch tree, but the oak had a tree preservation order on it. CllrWaring agreed to investi- gate further. Cllr Forknall said the closure
of Hertsfield Bridge for repairs would go ahead, regardless of
the concerns of the parish coun- cil. The work was expected to be carried out in October/No- vember and people would be stationed at the top and bottom of the hill controlling the traffic. Cllr Forknall said the floods
along Chart Hill Road should no longer be a problem as the blockages had been dug out. It was noted that the brick building at Chartview, which was not constructed in accor- dance with the plans, had not yet been demolished. The clerk was asked to investigate. Cllr Chris Webb said a book- keeper was needed for the Shop on the Green, and that the cabin issues had not been prop- erly addressed. Cllr Waring said he had cleaned out the white line marking machine as it had seized up. Cllr Valerie Underdown said
Ben Fleck and his colleagues had been clearing the local footpaths and had reported some broken gates, details of which had been passed on to the relevant people. Members heard that Commer-
cial Services Trading had been unable to carry out the marking of the football pitch in time for the first pre-season friendly due to staff holidays. The work had therefore been carried out by Cllr Waring. It was agreed that his invoice, when presented, should be approved.
Traffic calming FOLLOWING a further meeting with KCC highways officials, agreementwas reached over the revisions to the Heath Road traffic calming scheme. It was expected that a final public consultation on the scheme would be held in the autumn, with a view to implementation in the current financial year. Community warden Jo Jewiss
Coxheath Council
had organised a second Bark in the Park fun day, following the success of last year’s event. It was due to be held at Coxheath Village Hall playing field. The parish council stressed
its determination to protect the village from excessive housing development andwanted to ex- pand public open green space in the parish. A letter was sent to the chief executive of Maid- stone Council to this effect, a copy of which can be viewed on the parish website or at the library.
Following extensive commu-
nity engagement over the neigh- bourhood plan, it was likely that a draft document would be produced for a public consulta- tion before the end of 2013. Approval was given by the parish council for the contin- ued maintenance and upkeep of the football pitch at the Bea- con Field and for some tree sur-
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gery on overhanging branches on the land adjoining Linden Road. The council was covering the
cost of repairs to the dog-proof fencing and some sections of safety flooring at the Coxheath Village Hall play area. The roof of the bus shelter outside All Saints’ Church had been replaced. The council voted to join the
Kent County Playing Fields As- sociation with immediate ef- fect. Two more parish councillors
were needed to bring the total complement to 13. Anyone in- terested should contact the parish clerk, Terry Ketley, on 01622 745332. An enthusiastic person was needed to take on the role of the Coxheath Village News editor. This would entail organising advertising, collecting revenue, updating information on Mi- crosoft Publisher and arranging for printing and distribution. Again, expressions of interest should be made initially to the clerk.
Crime report
East Farleigh Council
THERE had been two crimes re- ported over the last month: theft of a vehicle from Gallants Lane and a theft from East Farleigh School. A new PCSO was due to be appointed in the next month. Parish councillors and resi-
dents had attended the opening of the new village car park when a small barbecue was held. The car park came into use on the first day of term, and with the help of parish council marshals, parents soon adjusted to the new system. The council agreed to take up the offer of a local resident to open and close the car park on days when the school doesn’t. There had been some confu-
sion as to the name and remit of the new highways committee. It was agreed that, from now on, it would be called The Bridge Working Party and its remit would be to prevent damage to the bridge and improve pedes- trian safety while maintaining emergency access for fire/am- bulance and allowing normal traffic flow and restricting non- appropriate vehicles. A full-size proof of the art-
work for the bridge interpreta- tion sign would shortly be presented to the council for ap- proval. The council would own the copyright for the artwork. The council considered whether it should perhaps ob- tain more than one copy at this point, in case of vandalism or damage. It was agreed to find out what this would cost. There would be training for
the new Speedwatch P42
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