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Barracks earmarked as potential homes site


THE Ministry of Defence says the Invicta Park Barracks could be leaving


Maidstone. Army barracks have been in the county town since 1797, with the present Invicta Barracks home to the Royal Engineers 36 Engineer Regiment, which includes two Gurkha field squadrons. Maidstone Council has listed in


its draft local plan a potential for 1,300 homes on the site, off Royal Engineers Road. Any development is unlikely to take place before 2026 and would be dependent on the MoD’s requirements. The barracks – currently Army accommodation and military build- ings within a 41-hectare site – was only recently categorised by the MoD as “retained”. However, the property portfolio is under regular


Village hall


post office plan TESTON Parish Council has ap- plied to extend the village hall to provide a permanent home for the village shop and post office. The facility, which is currently lo-


cated in a metal cabin on the grounds of the village hall in Church Street, has temporary con- sent until June. The extension, if al- lowed by Maidstone Council, would extend the hall towards the village green. The space vacated by the cabinwould be used for a meet- ing area. The parish council had £22,500


available to grant to the village hall management committee. This could translate into £27,000 if the council bought building supplies and services, donated them to the committee, and reclaimed the VAT. However, the asset would still re- main the property of the committee and not the parish council.


From left, Cllr Maria Heslop, MP Helen Grant, Scott de Garis and former England and Tottenham Hotspur star, Gary Stevens


Sporting achievement rewarded TWO Ditton residents have been rewarded by the borough council for their outstanding achievements in sport. Scott de Garis, chief coach at Ditton Minors’ Football Club,wonTonbridge


and MallingCouncil’s sports coach of the yearaward for helping young play- ers achieve their full potential. He received hisaward fromCllr Maria Heslop, cabinet member for leisure, youth and arts at a ceremony at K College. Scott said: “I’m very pleased and proud to accept thisaward. Coaching at


Ditton Minors is an absolute pleasure – they are such a great group of lads.” Ted Brown, from Cobdown Hockey Club, won the council’s lifetime


achievement award in recognition of more than 24 years’ work as player, member, fixtures secretary and umpire.


Children involved in music festival


ORGANISERS of this year’s Music@Malling have promised an even bigger festival with at least 1,500 school children involved in concerts andworkshops. The five-day programme from


Wednesday, September 24 will in- clude a series of masterclasses for aspiring musicians as well as per- formances by the festival’s resident ensemble, Chamber Domaine and the Sacconi Quartet. Plans for the fourth annual event


were outlined at a fundraising din- ner held by the Rotary Club of Malling at Leeds Castle. The


Mayor of Tonbridge and Malling Cllr Howard Rogers with Pamela Conibeer, president ofMalling Rotary and Alan Gibbins, chairman of Music@Malling Picture:Shani Hancock


evening raised more than £1,000 for the festival and a similar one is ex- pected in the summer. Artistic director Thomas Kemp said: “The festival in 2014 is focus-


ing on audience development and we are grateful for the help we have received from the Rotary Club of Malling and the hospitality we have received from Leeds Castle.”


review and theMoDhas suggested to Maidstone Council that in the longer term the site may be deemed surplus to requirements, leaving it free for house building or an alter- native use. Some 58 sites across the borough


have been selected as potentially suitable for development, as Maid-


stone Council strives to meet an es- timated housing need of 19,600 new homes by 2031. Almost 1,000 homes could be


built at Springfield, on the site of the old Whatman Paper Mill and at the former Lushington Estate, with its historic Grade II listed Park House, whichwas last used asKCC offices. Bridge Nursery in Allington has


been proposed as a site for 165 houses, while Oakapple Lane in Barming identified for 240 houses. The ruling Conservative party


faces opposition from the Lib Dems and KCC leader Paul Carter, who believes a lower housing target than 19,600 could be achieved.


News


A20 fish stall told to leave


CHUMMY’S, thewet fish stall on the A20 at Allington, will be made to move, after a decision by Tonbridge and Malling Council’s planning com- mittee.


Members accepted a recommen-


dation from officers that the sea food stall was operating without the relevant permission and pre- sented a nuisance to neighbours from noise and the smell of cooking – the closest resident lives just 15m away.


Officers were also concerned


about the loss of parking at Holt- wood Farm Shop, which already has an aquatic centre and Fellows Flowers. Councillors were told the operator had been asked to move, but had instead put in a planning application for the business in No- vember.However, this could not be progressed because paperwork was missing. Officers said the best way forward was to take enforce- ment action to get the business moved. A 200-signature petition supporting the business failed to persuade councillors otherwise. The details of the notice have still


to be determined but Chummy’s is likely to be given about two months to leave.


Hospital cars firm warned


Continued from page one


now been completed, with the ex- ception of those on long-term sick leave. The patient query and com- plaints service has also been cen- tralised to NSL’s main contact centre in Shrewsbury, which has tightened up the process, and shortened the time in which com- plaints are responded to, learned from, and acted on. Wayne Spedding, chief ambu-


lance officer for NSLCare Services, added: “We are extremely sorry that we fell short on meeting these essential standards set by the CQC. We recognise and acknowledge that this is a serious compliance failure on our part and that our learning from this failure is vital. “We have been open in fully ac- knowledging the difficulties en- countered, which has led to some patients being collected late, or not at all – and are pleased to say that this has improved. “Wewould like to assure our pa-


tients and colleagues that we are continuing to address these issues, andwe are confident of meeting all the standards in the shortest possi- ble time.”


Garden home


STUART Burgess has applied to Tonbridge and Malling Council to build accommodation for his par- ents in the back garden of his prop- erty at 67 CastleWay, Leybourne.


Malling February 2014 9


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