area vulnerable to unauthorised parking.


Playground plan MEMBERS agreed to engage Maria Cook of Craigdene Ltd as a consultant on the proposed playground refurbishment, subject to funding being agreed. The neighbourhood police


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council was working on a parish plan which would in- clude much detail on the iden- tifiable village hamlets. KHS had offered £3,573 to-


wards the costs of nine finger signposts. Repairs and maintenance of


the outdoor fitness equipment had been completed. Users of the Jubilee Hall had


team reported damage to the wing mirror of a car parked in New Road. Youths had been throwing windfall apples at houses in Pear Tree Avenue. A group of youths and their parents had been spoken to about this. As a result, the gate between Pear Tree Avenue and the recreation ground had been kept locked to deter people from using that route as a short cut to the com- munity centre. It was reported that an area


had been concreted and bol- lards erected on the grass op- posite the infant school which would hopefully deter parking on this area. Despite the many objections,


Tonbridge andMalling Council had approved the planning ap- plication for the demolition of an existing dwelling and erec- tion of two houses and one bungalow at 6 DownderryWay. The clerk reported that a fur-


ther planning enforcement in- vestigation was taking place into the alleged change of use at The Kentish Quarryman to a takeaway. Discussion took place on an invitation from the Gallagher Group to join the Hermitage Quarry management advisory group. Although the council had objected to the quarry pro- posal, it was suggested itwould be preferable to have represen- tation on this group involved in how the woodland is eventu- ally restored. Two councillors will represent the council on this group.


Rubble cleared


East Peckham Council


ARESIDENT had congratulated the parish council on getting the rubble removed from the former Rose and Crown pub. A resident had thanked the parish council for its opposi- tion to the sexual entertain- ment venue at The Harp. A letter and photographs had


been forwarded to Kent High- ways from a resident requesting the relocation of the bus stop in Church Lane to Pound Road. It was suggested that the vil-


lage have its own flag to be flown from a flag pole in the centre of the village. A resident raised a question


on local plans and was in- formed that the local plan was not being progressed for the time being. However, the parish


been reminded that there was to be no flyposting on either the walls or the doors. Unfortu- nately a notice placed on the wall by the gym club had re- sulted in marks. Over the summer holidays,


the vinyl floors had been steam cleaned, the sports hall floor cleaned and polished and the carpets cleaned, making the building much brighter and cleaner. The gym club had been under


the mistaken assumption that it had exclusive access to the Ju- bilee Hall. A letter clarifying the position had been sent to them. The contents of the East Peckham Club had been sold at auction. For £100, the parish council had obtained addi- tional chairs, two picnic benches, a TV, a framed print and two folding tables. The pic- nic benches had been placed on the playing fields. South East Coast Ambulance


had agreed to provide a com- munity defibrillator at no cost, provided the parish council bought an external cabinet for it to be housed. Anti-social behaviour at the Jubilee Hall playing fields and car park over the summer had included fire damage, youths kicking footballs onto the roof of the hall, broken glass on the playing fields and used con- doms found by the youth shel- ter.


Another large hole was


found dug by the youth shelter and two bonfires were lit be- tween the two trees near the ball park. It looked like a sofa had been burned and whoever responsible had used a wheel- barrow from the allotments. All incidents had been reported to the police and community war- den.


Car park patrols Hadlow Council


IT was noted that the police pa- trolledWilliams Field car park but it would be beneficial to the community if they could park and check behind the railing, as due to lack of public visibil- ity these areas suffered vandal- ism.


Suckers from the roots of the


tree on the corner of Carpenters Lane require removal. The Oil-Club, an independ-


ent organisation with no links to suppliers, had launched a club for Hadlow and the sur-


rounding area. Benefits of membership were reduced heating oil costs, fewer delivery lorries and carbon emissions. Details were on www.oil- club.co.uk and the parish no- ticeboards. PCSO Toni Matthew con- firmed that the police mobile contact vehicles in the area would be at Mereworth and East Peckham. As Hadlow had a community warden and was easily accessible for PCSOs, it would not have a mobile con- tact point. Aholeinthe dog walking


area had been repaired. An untaxed white van in Maidstone Road had been re- ported. The annual return for 2012/13 had been approved by auditors. Councillors expressed their appreciation to the parish office staff. Members of the newmanage-


ment team at The Harrow in- troduced themselves and their plans for the future of the pub- lic house. The primary schoolwould be


askedtoputanoteinits newsletter asking parents not to park in the Old School Hall car park and to encourage those living locally to walk their chil- dren to school. At school run times, the car park was severely congested and concerns were raised about safety. It was sug- gested that parents could park in roads such asMaltings Close and then walk their children through School Lane. A letter would be sent to the Depart- ment of Education expressing concerns at this issue. The council was thanked for


its support for Hadlow Tower and in return members sent their congratulations to the tower group for all their en- deavours which had ensured its success. Tours had been fully booked during the season and members were looking forward to the next one starting on April 24.


Councillors considered a res-


ident’s request to relocate the warmemorial. They concluded its present location was well known and well attended and as a listed monument, moving it would be costly and highly administrative. Its current site was considered safer from van- dals.


Donations of £50 each would


go to Victim Support and Ton- bridge and Malling Citizens Advice. The SITA funding for the


skate park had been approved and the third party payment made. To complete the project delivery plan, £10,000 would be required from the accounts. This would be used towards the completion of the skate park and to install a basket swing within the play area.


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The skate ramps would be purchased from Full Circle Leisure Ltd, trading as Evolu- tion Skatepark Ramps. Expen- diture of £20,000 from the reserves was approved


Kings Hill Council Scouting event


THE leaders of the Kings Hill Explorer Scout group gave a presentation and answered questions on the proposed ori- enteering event on Kings Hill. A permanent orienteering course was proposed if the event was successful. It was agreed that the council sup- ported the event and would li- aise about possible car parking locations. No agenda date was known


for the Kings Hill Phase 3 ap- plication to go before the bor- ough’s planning committee, A working group of parish coun- cillors was formed which would report to full council summarising concerns and highlighting any new issues by email. It was resolved that posters would be displayed to publi- cise the date of the meeting with Tonbridge and Malling Council. Information would be emailed to attendees of the pre- vious consultation meeting and other interested parties and a banner would be displayed. A resident working with the


lobby group gave an update to the council which agreed to support and facilitate the group. It was noted that Cllr George


had resigned as she hadmoved out of the area. County Cllr Matthew Balfour reported on funding for the third school for Kings Hill. The views of the council on the ap- plicants to run the school would be shared with him. A report on the recent police contact point meeting was given. No members of the pub- lic had attended. These meet- ings would be reviewed. Concern about nuisance youths and the actions of the authorities was reported and discussed in detail. A meeting with the local police inspector and community warden would be arranged to discuss possible solutions. The incident was also not mentioned in the re- port from the PCSO which would be raised. The certified annual return


for 2012/13 was received with no comments from the auditor. It was resolved that the


clerk’s job title would be changed to chief executive offi- cer.


Fees increase MEMBERS of the cricket club attended to ask the parish coun- cil and Mereworth P42


Mereworth Council Malling 35


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