News
downsmail.co.uk Castle ‘policing the locals’
LEEDS Castle has faced a mixed reaction locally to its new system of photo ID tickets in a bid to stamp out “Facebook swapping” by visitors trying to avoid entrance fees.
Sharing yearly tickets had been
used for some years but chief execu- tive Sir David Steel (pictured) has decided to clampdownon the rogue practice. In the past, peo-
ple wishing to gain access to the heritage site put requests on social media to borrow other people’s tickets.
The system aims to wipe out that practice – but it may come at a cost. Local people fear it will erode local community goodwill, especially in those villages which are directly af- fected by the castle’s heavy traffic flows for large events. Beth Hannant McCausland wrote
on Downs Mail’s Facebook page: “They used to value their locals – in- stead of policing them – because of the upheaval their functions cause the surrounding area with traffic and parking. “At the last fireworks, certain
placeswere blocked off by inconsid- erate drivers abandoning their vehi- cles instead of driving into the muddy field car parks. “Facebook call-outs for ticket
swappingwere despicable and very naïve, but a few inappropriate ac- tions should not tarnish the goodwill and relationships thatwe've enjoyed on both sides until recent years. “Changing the tickets to day tick- ets instead might be an answer, but
DJ is musical
guest at ball RADIO DJ Neil Francis (pictured) will provide the music for party- goers at a charity Summer Ball in Bearsted. The presenter – who featured on Invicta’s Morn- ing Zoo, Virgin Radio and Capi- talFM– will take charge of the song sheet at Bearsted Golf Club on Friday, July 14, for the event in aid of the Heart of Kent
Hospice at Aylesford. A prize draw and entertainment
from magician Mark Gray will also feature. The ball will run from 7.15pm to 1am and is in memory of Bearsted mum Jenny Tester. Tickets, which cost £45 and in-
clude a glass of bubbly and a three- course meal, are available at
www.bearstedcharitysummer-
ball.eventbrite.co.uk.
4 Maidstone East June 2017
Visitors hit record high
THE highest number of visitors ever have been welcomed to Leeds Cas- tle in the 2016/17 financial year. Despite worries of falling num-
bers from the continent last sum- mer, the figures have picked up, which chief executive Sir David Steel says is a “fantastic result”. Sir David said the foundation
then they'd miss out on increased in- come and the sting of hundreds travelling for one-off days.” Jacqueline Prowse wrote: “I can
see why they've done it, but I think there should be a day rate charge for tourists as an option, rather than an annual price for one visit.” But Bridget Simmonds countered:
“They always used to have that sys- tem in place so good on them for bringing it back. They are a charity, after all said and done.” Others described the new idea as
a “sledgehammer to crack a nut” and suggested a much-reduced yearly rate for local families. A statement released by Leeds
Castle said: “As of March 27, Leeds Castle introduced aphoto IDsystem for all admission tickets. This is a
widely-accepted process for tourist and other heritage attractions which offer admission tickets that are valid for a year. “The transactional image is stored securely and used solely for ensur- ing the validity of the tickets onpres- entation and to protect the ticket holder from misuse of their ticket ,should it be lost. “Our terms and conditions have
always stated that ticketswere non- transferable and nothing has changed in that respect. “Leeds Castle is an extremely pop-
ular historic attraction, with over 620,000 visitors in 2016. Since the in- troduction of photo ID, our visitors have been very accommodating, un- derstanding and, as whole, ex- tremely positive.”
which runs the heritage attraction now feels it is “set fair” for the year. In the Leeds and Broomfield magazine, he writes: “I am pleased to report that it was a hugely suc- cessful year for the foundation. “Despite our concerns during the summer, the Christmas period and for the first fewmonths of2017saw a huge number of people visit the estate such that, overall, in the 2016/17 financial year we wel- comed over 620,000 day visitors to the castle, the highest number ever recorded.” This month has seen the replace-
mentof the Dark Skies presentation at the maze with a feature depict- ing the castle’s role during the Bat- tle of Britain as a place to care for injured airmen. It includes a film which Sir David
has described as “absolutely grip- ping”.
Bearsted’s year of achievement
BEARSTED has held its annual parish meeting to review its per- formance and celebrate a year of achievements. Pictured here are Derek Butler, the outgoing mayor on one of his final engagements, and the parish coun- cil chairman Fiona Redman, who has stepped down to make way for Richard Camp. There were reports and updates
from the chairs of environment, fi- nance, community and communica- tion and planning committees. Mrs Redman, who served two
years in the chair, said: “Itwas a very successful APM, which was light- hearted in tone, reviewing the past year for the council with contribu- tions from all committees. “Voluntary organisations were present in abundance, some of whom gave a report on their past year.” Cllr Redman told the meeting in
early May that the parish council’s missionwas to provide “what is best
for Bearsted” while delivering value for money to residents. The meeting was told that since
last May, 115 planning applications affecting Bearsted had been consid- ered and the council had made views known on Barty House, the Woodcut Farm proposals at M20 junction 8 and the Local Plan. Whilst the Church Landway
lights, bins on the green, Christmas Fair and legal fees have come in over budget, there was a reported in-
creased income in other important local areas. These included the fire- works display, the hugely popular summer playscheme and the allot-
ments.Among those which came in under-budget for the yearwere staff salaries, the parish office and special projects. Catering was provided by Cllr
TonyRyan at Madginford Hall,who provided hot and cold food as well as wine and soft drinks. More Bearsted news, page 40
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