News BHS threat
DOZENSof staff at theBHSstore in Maidstone face an uncertain future after the troubled fashion and homeware retailerwent into admin- istration. BHS has struggled to carve out a significant market share against dis- count fashion rivals and shopping online. The store in The Mall is one of 164
under threat of closure because of £1.3bn of debts and a £500m pen- sion black hole. The group aims to continue trad-
ing while a buyer is sought accord- ing to the administrators Duff & Phelps.
Music tribute
THE Proms in the Park 2016 will feature a tribute to “Mr Music of Maidstone” Jeffrey Vaughan Mar- tin, who died recently aged 78. The event, staged at the Whatman Millennium Park Riverside on May 28, aims to celebrate the contribu- tion Jeffrey made to local music. A Maidstone Borough Council spokesman said: “We haven’t worked out what form it will take, but there will be a fitting tribute to Jeffrey and his legacy. He gave so much.” See obituary page 30
downsmail.co.uk
Call for clearer signs on spending penny
KENT County Council has been accused of getting the public’s knickers in a twist over their right to use the toilet in its country parks. It follows the introduction of cameras at KCC-run country parks to ensure visitors pay and display. But after introducing them at Teston Bridge Country Park, 72- year-old villager Ronald Henderson took issue with the fact that he reg- ularly popped in to the park to use the loo without needing to worry about his quick trip to the toilet landing him a ticket. He approached the parish coun-
cil to ask if motorists using the pub- lic toilets, but not the park, are given any grace andwas told that in such cases, users are allowed 15 minutes to spend a penny, without charge. Mr Henderson has now asked if
the county council would be willing to put up a sign to that effect, but says it has refused.
He said: “There is a sad lack of
public conveniences anywhere in Kent, so you make a mental note of facilities like this and I have used it often. “I appreciate the county council is
trying to make up a shortfall of funding, but I do resent having to pay to use a park that is already owned by the community, worse still, believing I should be paying simply to use the toilets.” He says a sign is needed so that
toilet users aren’t tempted to park illegally on double yellow lines out- side the park in an emergency and claims the county council is “com- mitting fraud” by failing to notify those using the toilet that they do not have to pay for 15 minutes. He has also asked for information
on how the rules apply in other KCC-managed country parks which offer toilets, of which there are nine. A spokesman for the county council said: “There is a 15-minute
Ronald Henderson at Teston
period of grace, which was intro- duced primarily for people drop- ping off children for parties etc., although we are aware that people do pop in to use the toilets. “This period of grace applies to all those parks that have toilets.”
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downsmail.co.uk WDA Summer Camp DANCE CLASSES
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