downsmail.co.uk 


Have your say on our local plan MailMarks


AT long last! Maidstone Council has a


dra local plan for our consideration that will eventually lead to a government decision aer a local inquiry. It took me 10 hours to come to terms


with the main detail in the 400 pages – but it is captivating reading, now available on Maidstone Council’swebsite. We know the Government will insist on Maidstone upping its house building in the period up to 2031 – the only question now is, how many it will sele for in approving our local plan. The council has engaged top specialists


for the required evidence-based figure of our need and they say a massive 19,600 homes –well above last year’s expectations of 14,100. Maidstonewould like to prove this is too high for our land availability and provision of infrastructure and plans to present a case for 17,100. The dra local plan now unveils a selection of more than 50 sites where most of these houses could go. Most are on the fringes of urban Maidstone, largely to the south either side of Suon Road or to the north-west in the Barming/Hermitage Lane area. But seven villages with significant


What is ridiculous about this, if one stops


to think, is that one day, all of this “discussion” will have been awaste of time! Human life generally will not be able to continue when all wild resources – animals, plants, insects, flowers etc have been lost due to destruction of habitats for human purposes. Derek Gould,Woodcut, Maidstone


Parish council correction


Dear Sir – the recent South edition page 20 – “Flood fears for housing” – you state that StephenWis is a councillor and a member of Marden Parish Council. Neither of these statements is true; Mr


Wiswas acting entirely on his own and without any democratic mandate. Alison Hooker, clerk Marden Parish Council


Bad time for dredging


Dear Sir – In the February edition of the Downs Mail, an Environment Agency spokesperson said that river dredgingwas


DENNISFOWLE President dfowle2011@aol.com


services and facilities are designated as rural service centres. Harrietsham has four sites totalling 315 houses; Lenham three with 145 but many more perhaps towards the end of the period; Marden four with 550; Staplehurst two with 905; Headcorn five with 425; Coxheath three with 410; Yalding two with 265. The key philosophies for placing these houses seem sound – but the detail will bring local objections and infrastructure challenges. I hope the parishes will also weigh up the added security a larger population can bring to some services they cherish. The biggest challenges are urban


highways and transport. The two key areas for more houses are already too busy at peak times and the council must work very closely with highways authority KCC to contain the load on Hermitage Lane, Tonbridge Road, Loose


set to take place along the Medway from March until June. Would it no be more prudent to carry out


suchwork later in the year, so as to avoid wildlife breeding and rearing cycles? Thiswould demonstrate an excellent example of man and nature working in harmony rather than in opposition. S E Rigby, Bankfields, Headcorn


Thanks for balance


Dear Sir – Like Martin James (Comment, January) I appreciate the local political balance of the Downs Mail. I too have given up on local and national newspapers I have come to distrust. Many major and difficult decisions are


now before Maidstone Council and I believe most Conservative and Lib Dem councillors face them intelligently. Madeleine Moore, Maidstone, by email


No room for more cars


Dear Sir – Isn’t it time a surveywas done in Tovil to see if the facilities are capable of


Road and Suon Road. It is on the highways case the two councils canwork well together and prove to the Government that a ceiling must be placed on the total number of houses. Maidstone Council plans to launch a


new park-and-ride at Linton crossroads and to reduce town centre long-term parking. An emphasis will grow on cycling,walking and public transport, which has to be frequent and cheap to succeed. There are many unanswered questions,


of course, but currently my main concern is keeping traffic moving in Suon Road and Loose Road if a bus lane is introduced. My biggest disappointment in the whole


dra plan is that a business site is deemed unnecessary at this stage south of M20 Junction 8. It is a sensitive area and any development there must bewell controlled in design and extent. But I feel this is the prime location for new businesses to ensure greater prosperity for our residents. Now it is time for your say. Consultation starts on March 21 and closes on May 7.


supporting so many more houses? Apart from the drain smells that arise


down Burial Ground Lane (it’s not the tip) and Church Road, there is the problem of cars parking anywhere and everywhere. All the footpaths have cars on them and


many drivers do not live in the roads they park on because there are not enough parking areas or people can’t be bothered to park away from their front doors. Where I live there are parking spaces around the back of the houses. It’s time peoplewere told to park there. Another problem is Burial Ground Lane.


It is impossible towalk on the footpath because of cars belonging to people working and the large lorries and trailers. I know one shouldn’t moan about these


things as people areworking, but I and people whowork at Tescowalk down this road every day, and a good many drivers are not too careful when driving where the road is narrow. More houses will mean more vehicles and more danger. And another thing – when arewe going


to get a footpath from the top of Farleigh Hill down to Tesco? P Durant, Flood Hatch


Private school proud of its excellent report


SCHOOL inspectors have given Suon Valence School and its preparatory school a glowing bill of health. The preparatory schoolwas rated “excellent” in all eight categories by the Independent Schools Inspectorate, while Suon Valence gained “excellent” in seven of nine categories andwas deemed to have “made excellent progress since the last inspection” in 2009. Inspectors say this is due in large


part to the “excellent leadership from senior management”. The prep school was praised by


the inspectors for meeting the children’s needs exceptionallywell. Throughout the school pupils’ achievements were judged to be excellent, “aaining high standards and gaining a secure grounding in literacy and numeracy”. Teaching staff at the school are pleased that their expertise has been rated as excellent.


Pupils have considerable success


in the Kent Test and demonstrate confidence, self-awareness and courtesy in everything they do. Prep school head Malcolm Gough said: “This is a hugely positive outcome, but we are already looking for furtherways to improve. There will be no resting on laurels.” Teaching at Suon Valence was


said to be excellent and the inspectors recognised that the


school provides an excellent education and pupils’ personal development is strong. They are “supported in an inclusive community by excellent pastoral care and an excellent boarding education


that


encourages the development of key personal skills and confidence.” GCSE results had improved over


the past four years and at A Level, results have been similar to those of grammar schools in recent years.


Maidstone South March 2014 33


Comment


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