News
Train delays ‘likely until
end of 2017’ COMMUTERS in Kent are likely to face delays until the end of 2017, ac- cording to Southeastern. Only 61% of trains have run on
time since Christmas, with several major events when trains have been disrupted for hours. Mid Kent MP Helen Whately has
been holding talks with Southeast- ern in a bid to get to the root of the problem. She said: “While they are trying,
I’m frustrated that – by theirownad- mission – we’re likely to see delays all the way through to the end of 2017 when the major works at Lon- don Bridge eventually finish.” The MP met with Southeastern managing director David Statham. She said: “Since Christmas Eve
we've seen the service go from bad to worse.” One of the “disaster” days was caused by the failure of new signalling equipment and an- other due to iced-up rails. Heavy rain at Christmas caused several landslips, including one at Holling- bourne. Mr Statham said the collapse of
the seawall atDover, destroying the track and putting that part of the net- work out of action, had made it very difficult for Southeastern to keep services working. Repairing the line at Dover may take most of the year and Southeastern recognises it has to find away to improve the service. Mrs Whately said: “While the con- ditions may have been challenging, Southeastern acknowledged that be- tween it and Network Rail, they need to be able to keep the service running better.” Southeastern told the MP it was employing more drivers and crew, increasing “engineers on the road”, and avoiding decoupling trains to speed up services and reduce break- downs. It is also going to de-ice at milder temperatures to avoid a re- peat of iced-up rails. Mrs Whately is due to meet Southeastern again, to- gether with Network Rail, to keep up the pressure.
downsmail.co.uk
Celebrating the fruits of their labours at awards
CHEGWORTH Valley Juices at Harrietsham has been named Kent Juice Producer of the Year in the Taste of KentAwards.
Our region also squeezed an-
other worthy title when young juice-maker Alexandra Auger walked away with the title of Young Food and Farming Entre- preneur of the Year. ChegworthValley, whichwas set
up in 1983 at Water Lane Farm, presses its fruit in small batches, often within hours of picking, to make organic, single variety and blended juices, including rasp- berry, strawberry, wild elder- flower, rhubarb and beetroot. The farm now sells from its Lon-
don stores at Borough Market and Notting Hill as well as from the farm gate and farmers’ markets. The judges said: “Itwas very dif-
ficult to pick a winner. All three fi- nalists produce fantastic juices, but Chegworth Valley provided the whole package and really stood out as the overall winner.” Director CharlotteWalter was at
the black tie awards’ dinner at the Detling Showground to receive the award for Chegworth Valley. She said: “We are over the moon to
The 24-year-old started The Juice Executive from her garage after leaving university and in 2014 opened her purpose-designed juic- ing facility in Lordswood. Alex, who grew up in Bearsted
and attended Maidstone Grammar School, said: “The award is fantas- tic to win as it raises the credibility of our business, and it is great to recognise the work of our team.” She started the business to make
Chegworth Valley director Charlotte Walter receives her award fromNigel Stewart, from sponsor A C Goatham
have been awarded Best Kent Juice Producer for the second year run- ning. As a family-run business, much time and dedication is put in to the running of the farm and to receive another Taste of Kent award makes it all the more worth- while.”
Alexandra Auger, from Lordswood, was also there to re- ceive her award after being named Kent Young Food and Farming En- trepreneur of the Year.
good juice from vegetables, to keep sugar levels down and nutrient lev- els up and to deliver on amazing taste.
Alex said: “I started by myself
and now have a nine-woman team – mostly under 25 – working at our Lordswood factory.” The judges commented on the standard of the entries – and the fact that all the finalists were women – praising Alexandra for “demonstrating a clear business focus, a commitment to local sourc- ing and for generating employ- ment opportunities as her business expands”.
Pupils put their pride in school on film
PUPILS from Loose Primary School Council have been working with A-level media students from Invicta Grammar School on a video to promote their school. Pupils and parents attended the premiere to
see the results of the 12-week project. Three videos created by year 1 pupils showing learning throughout the curriculum were shown as well as a film of a day in the life of a pupil. MissWatts, assistant headteacher at Invicta,
thanked all staff and pupils at Loose, saying she had seen such pride and excellence at the school during their visits and that this had made the filming of a video easy for her students.
Concerns at care home put in special measures
A HARRIETSHAM care home for adults with learning disabilities of- fering a range of poor services and standards has been placed into spe- cial measures. An unannounced inspection of
Parkwood House inWest Street by the Care Quality Commission ruled the home “inadequate”. The inspecting officer ruled the
safety of its 13 residentswas inade- quate, health and social care regu- lations were being breached and the management of the service pro- vided by Counticare Limited was inadequate. In terms of how effec-
18 Maidstone East April 2016
tive, responsive and caring the service was, the CQC said all re- quired improvement. The inspector noted that only an interim managerwas in place, with other care staff vacancies, and a high amount of agency workers used to meet people’s needs. The inspector also found: “Peo-
ple were not provided with activi- ties which met their needs. People were not always actively involved in planning their meals. The qual- ity assurance systems were not being implemented and not effec- tive in identifying areas for im-
provement. People were not safe- guarded against abuse or the risk of abuse and some staff were unclear of the signs to look for if they sus- pected abuse.” However, the inspector added:
“People were treated with respect and staff knew how to maintain people’s privacy and dignity. Peo- ple received their medicines safely and, when necessary, health care professionals were involved to make sure people remained as healthy as possible.” TheCQCsays that by placing the service into special measures it will
be able to ensure the provider sig- nificantly improves. The care home’s performance will be kept under review and, if needed, ur- gent enforcement action could be taken. The CQC will inspect the home within six months. A spokesperson for Parkwood
House said a new managerwas ap- pointed in January. They added: “We are committed to ensuring that, on the next inspection by the CQC, Parkwood House is able to evidence significant improvement, building on the positive work being led by its new manager.”
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