News Carnival to
celebrate arts THERE will be a carnival atmos- phere in Maidstone this summer when the town stages a parade of arts and culture. The town centre will be bursting
with colour, music and fun on Sat- urday, July 5, as more than 40 arts and voluntary organisations pa- rade from County Hall to Jubilee Square, viaWeek Street and Frem- linWalk. This will be followed by a showcase of Maidstone talent. The event, which is being organ-
ised and partly funded by the Maidstone Town Team and the Maidstone Area Arts Partnership, is the first to receive a grant from the Make Maidstone Smile fund – a borough council scheme to encour- age art and cultural development. Ken Scott, chair of Maidstone
Town Team’s events group, said: “Maidstone has such awealth of art and culture. This is a fantastic op- portunity to celebrate and show- case the town’s talent.” Every parade needs good cos-
tumes and 16 textile artists have been trained to help groups design and create theirs. From the fun to the flamboyant, support for cos- tume design and creation will be given at one of fiveworkshops hap- pening between now and July. Schools, arts and voluntary or- ganisations that want to be in- volved can call project manager Richard Gretton on 07802 425022 or email
grettonr@gmail.com .
B&B plea at
village inn AFRESH plan has been submitted for bed and breakfast rooms at The White Horse pub in Otham. Owner Catherine Small is pro- posing to demolish the barn store in the car park and replace it with a four-room B&B annex. A previous application to replace the barn with a two-bedroom house was turned down.
Catherine said if the revised plan
– which she says is crucial to the survival of the village pub – is thrown out, she will appeal. She said: “The council is suggest-
ing that a new-build would be bet- ter and, in truth, I’d rather do this. That way, I will know the sound- proofing and insulation is up to scratch.We will now have to see.” Her architect said the pub had al-
ready been saved from closure by the present owner, adding: “To en- sure that the public house remains viable it is essential to diversify and create additional income. “The creation of this B&B will
make the whole enterprise more fi- nancially viable and also attract tourism into the area. This proposal is viewed as an essential part of this rural business.”
46 Maidstone East April 2014
downsmail.co.uk
Gymnast Courtney, 18, takes national title
MAIDSTONEgymnast Courtney Tulloch haswon the English title for rings in the English Championships – just half amark ahead of the runner-up.
The 18-year old, from Pegasus Gymnastic Club, was competing with two new vaults, both includ- ing a double somersault, and also took the bronze medal for this ap- paratus. Other members of the club’s
men’s artistic squad who took part notched up some impressive re- sults against competitors from all over England. In the youngest age group, Isaac Frimston, Sam Mostowfi and Sam Ghinn all made good progress, competing with new routines and tricky combinations. Sam Mostowfi finished fifth in
the boys’ category, swinging a much-improved rings routine to
Courtney Tulloch on rings
finish in third place and a fourth place finish on high bar. Sam Ghinn finished in 10th place,
just outside the apparatus medals for high bar, while Isaac, having had a couple of falls, finished in 22nd place, just outside the appara- tus medals on both high bar and rings.
James Hall and Courtney Tulloch competed in the seniors’event with members of the London 2012 Olympic Bronze medallists’ team. James finished in eighth place, having fallen twice, losing an over- all bronze medal, but proving that he is a viable contender to repre- sent Great Britain as a six-piece artistic gymnast. He finished fourth on pommels,
just behind Olympians Max Whit- lock and Louis Smith. The Pegasus club recently relo-
cated from Bearsted to new prem- ises in Farleigh Hill, Tovil, which are three times the size, to accom- modate the growing interest in the sport.
Bluebell walk
A planning application has been submitted for eight more rooms at the Black Horse Inn in Thurnham
Pub plan for extra rooms
AN additional eight rooms for tourist accommodation could be created in an overspill parking area at The Black Horse Inn, Thurnham. The layout would match the existing letting rooms: each would have a
double bedroom with en suite bathroom. Maidstone Council will deter- mine the planning application for the pub, in PilgrimsWay.
Fears for future of allotments
ALLOTMENT holders at Lenham have been told the village gardens in Ham Lane are to be sold. Their landlord – the St John Am- bulance charity – announced in No- vember that the drill hallwas to be disposed of, but did not say what was to become of the allotments. Now, the Ham Lane Allotment Association has been told the 24 plots are to go as part of the char- ity’s on-going property review. In a letter from South East re- gional director Mark Farmer, the
association has been told it will get an opportunity to discuss a possi- ble way forward with the charity. John Craig, from the allotment holders’ association, said: “We would like to find a way of secur- ing this land for the village, espe- cially as so many other allotment sites have been built on.We will be very keen to take St John up on its invitation to talk.” The association has paid for a
year’s rent in advance and mem- bers have planted up their plots.
Spring ball for Macmillan
MACMILLAN Cancer Support is holding its Spring Ball at the Tudor Park Hotel in Bearsted on Friday, May 30. The event starts with a drinks reception in the Thurnham Suite at 7.30pm. Tickets are £40 per head and include a three-course meal and a drink on arrival. There will also be a raffle, auction and disco. To book, call Moira on 07961 051654 or email
moira.mitchell@sky.com.
JOIN the Heart of Kent Hospice for its 27th Bluebell Walk – a six-mile circular route through the heart of Kent’s beautiful countryside when the bluebells should be at their best. The walk on May 4 starts at Har- rietsham village hall and entry costs £10 per adult, £3 per child or £25 for a family of two adults and three children.Aploughman’s lunch is in- cluded. There will also be cake, craft and fruit stalls. Parking is free. Walkers can register at
www.hokh.org, by emailing
fundraising@hokh.co.uk or calling 01622 790195. Registrations will be accepted on the day, and walkers can sign in from 9am.
Moat defences
AWALL is being built around the eastern end of Leeds Castle moat. Some 10ft above the waterline,
the wall was ordered by the Envi- ronment Agency,which has classed the moat a reservoir. However, on the other side of the causeway, no work is planned at the Great Water – which is not a reservoir, although more likely to flood, because the agency has no enforcement power over it.
Trees can go
MAIDSTONE Council has granted planning permission for the re- moval of two trees in the Lenham conservation area. Acherry tree and silver birch can
be felled at Douglas Road Almshouses, High Street, as the fallen leaves are said to present a slip hazard for elderly residents. The council encouraged the ap- plicant to plant a replacement tree.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72