downsmail.co.uk Continued from page 34


idea and the clerkwas asked to followup on thema�er. Play scheme The chair highlighted a number of issues concerning the running of the play scheme and, given the fact that the use of the school hall is highly unlikely, the schemewould not run this year, but it is hoped itwill be run in 2019. Station parking The clerk hadwri�en again to the operators of the station car park regarding pricing and issueswith commuter parking in the village. Oak Lane The PCSO had arranged for the enforcement teamto visit Oak Lane, and a number of parking ticketswere issued. Burial groundMBCwere investigating the feasibility of a natural burial ground at Redhill Stables and the detailwaswith the legal team. Speedwatch TheHeadcorn Speedwatch co- ordinatorwas pressing for a small number of hotspots to be agreed.Approval of the sites by Kent Policewas beingwaited on. Centenary The council have agreed to take part in the centenary celebrations of the end ofWWI. Other groups in the village have been contacted to gain support. FiveAcreWood The council had been approached by the school for a donation. Children fromHeadcorn do a�endwhat Cllr Evenden saidwas an excellent school. Itwas decided not to offer a specific donation but to email the schoolwith suggestions ofwhere shemay look for funding opportunities. Donations It has been agreed to donate £100 to Country Eye and a start-up donation of £100 to newcommunity group Cake and Company.A donation toHi Kent for hall hire to supportHearingAid Clinic was alsomade. Itwas agreed itwas an invaluable service in the community, the fee of £72 to hire theMethodist Church has been covered by the council.


Hunton


Bridge open The bridge across the River Buelt at the end ofWater Lane had been replaced after being closed for an extended period after itwas found to be unsafe. Cricket pleaHuntonWanderers are on the look out for newplayers. They play on both Saturday and Sunday throughout the summer. For details contact Steve Jones at hwcc@btinternet.com. School bus Theminibus provided by KCC which runs to Cornwallis School is to be cancelled at the end of the summer termas it is undersubscribed.No children from Hunton are registered to use it from September onwards, but if anyonewould like tomake use of this service, they should contact KCC Public Transport department. Saturdaywalks The Saturdaywalks are nowa regular feature and severalmore will be organised by theHunton Club team in 2018. WinterWarmer TheWinterWarmer lunch series came to an end onMarch 1, butwill return to the village in the autumn. SpeedwatchMore volunteers are needed to helpmonitor speed in the village. Potential volunteers are asked to contactHelen on 820810 or email helen@helenward.org.


36 Maidstone Weald April 2018


Dawn Chorus A Dawn Choruswalk led by Simon Ginnawwill take place on Sunday April 29, followed by breakfast and JapaneseHanami BlossomCelebrations. Villagemeeting The annual village meetingwill take place onMay 21. Itwill feature a presentation by Charlie Russell fromthe University of Kent about the Li�le Owl Project.


Langley


Defibrillator The defibrillator and outside cabinet had been received and a quotewas awaited fromthe village hall electrician in order to install it. Speedwatch A resident hadwri�enwith concerns about traffic on the Leeds Road between theA20 andA274 through Leeds and Langley. Itwas suggested that seeking a decrease from40mph to 30mph at the Leeds boundarymay help, alongwith the deployment of the Speedwatch equipment, may help reduce speeds.Newvolunteers were to be sought as the previous Speedwatch teamdisbanded last year. Play area Themonthly play area inspection report had been received and reported that mosswas forming on the safety surfaces and the gatewas closing too fast. The clerk was to action the issues raised. Village hall Cllr Knowles gave a brief overviewof the village hallmanagement meeting and reported that initial quotes had been received for the repair to the roof. Signposts The signpost had fallen over or been hit on the corner ofHorseshoes Lane andHeath Road, and a signpostwas lying on theHorseshoes Lane footpath.


Linton


VillageHall Cllr Burden reported that the rear garden to the hall had been levelled andwould be finished as andwhen a formal design has been agreed. Baby changing facilities had been installed in the toilets and themanagement commi�ee were looking to decorate the hall and improve the floor during the year. Parishwebsite Articles have beenwri�en on both the Vicarage Field andHill Farm development proposals, councillorswere asked tomake sure they correctly represented the council’s views. Playground Cllr Po�er confirmed that all agreedwork had been complete. Cllr Whitmarsh added that itwas anticipated that themoremajor improvements to the play areawould be undertaken as part of the Vicarage Field development. Parish allotments Allotmentsmanager Jane Sawyer reported that despite the snow, the plotswere lookingwell-tended with several dug over andmanured, seed beds in preparation and fruit bushes pruned. Defibrillator A donation of £200 towards the parish defibrillator had been given by Linton Park School and the clerkwas asked to check the account to ensure it had been received by BACS. ConservationArea The chairman reported thatMBC had responded and stated that the ConservationManagement Planwas being progressed.He suggested that the


council invite the newConservation Officer to a�end the parish annualmeeting. CCTV As agreed, the chairman had contacted QTec regarding the CCTV specification and had also spoken to Marden andHunton councils,who both had positive feedback on the company.A sitemeetingwas planned, and the chairman also confirmed that the payment would be reimbursed by Firmin’s. Recycling bin Cllr Carpenterwas concerned the clothes recycling bin the car park had not been emptied andwas overflowing. The clerkwas to raise this withMBC. Speedwatch Cllr Cresswell updated members on the progress of Speedwatch and said hewas happy to store the equipment until a suitable placewas found. Parishmeeting TheAnnual ParishMeeting will take place onApril 24 and that parish archivist David Sendleswould give a presentation. Light refreshmentswould be served, arranged by CllrsWhitmarsh and Cresswell.


Loose


Waste bin The parish council agreed to purchase and install a bin in Bray Gardens, whichwould need to be adopted byMBC. Beer BarnNoise fromthe brewerywas discussed. This had become amajor problem,with summer events leading to complaints.AsMBC needed evidence of the problemif it is to act, the council agreed to ask residents to report any complaints directly toMBC.Noise fromthemonthly livemusic events at the Chequerswould be monitored. Metal detectingA request formetal detecting on council landwas rejected. Swiss Scouts Swiss Loose Scouts advised that donations had been received to cover the cost of the repair to the railings; they will also repair the recent damage to the road railings. The group had set up a woodland scheme and following consultationwith the Forestry Commission were to remove some trees fromQuarry Wood and plant newones. Neighbourhood Plan TheNeighbourhood Planwould be ratified, subject to changes recommended byMBC. Parishmeeting The agenda for theannual parishmeeting onApril 25will take the same format as last year. The clerkwas to write to all groups concerned. Therewill also be a defibrillator demonstration. Loose Views LooseNewswill in future be a double-page spread bi-monthly in the In andAround Loosemagazine. Resignation CllrMalcolmSummers had resigned due to health and family issues. Hewas thanked for all of his hardwork.


Marden


Trains Southeastern updated that the potholes had been fixed but thewhite lining had still not been sorted. The drains and gullieswere still blocked andNetwork Railwere being chased in regards to the fencing. The council also agreed towrite to Southeastern,Helen Grant and other agencieswith regard to the closure of the


downsmail.co.uk


station during the snowin February. Cllr Adamwas to draft a le�er and circulate it to councillors. Road safety A KentHighways Engineer had looked at proposals for road safety outside of the primary school. Details on the proposal for a SID in Goudhurst Road had also been circulated and councillors agreed in principal,with the clerk asked to speakwith KentHighways to liaisewith the council in regard to locations. Newcouncillor TomStevens had applied to be co-opted to the council. Some councillors hadmetwith himprior to the meeting as hewas unable to a�end. Itwas agreed for himto be co-opted and hewas also appointed to the planning commi�ee. Business forumCouncillorswere of the impression that theNetwork of Rural Business Forums had dissolved as the websitewas not available. The clerkwas to contact theNRBF chairman to confirm. PSCOsNicolaMorris remains the PCSO forMarden and Yalding and Sgt Roy Haffenden is nowin charge of the PCSOs. The nextmeeting of the Police Liaison Groupwas set forApril 18 and Cllr Turner hoped to a�end. Road latestAmeeting had been held between KentHighways,MBC and Linton Parish Council regarding theA229. The clerkwas to speak to county councillor Eric Hotson to find outwhyMardenwere not invited. Cemetery competition Cllrs Boswell and Newton had visited the cemetery on several occasions to take photographs for the ICCMCemetery Photography Competition. The closing date is June 30 and the photoswere to be circulated. Li�er pick The li�er pickwas cancelled due to badweather and itwas proposed that it be held in the autumn instead.


Staplehurst


Toilet cleaning The council discussed the report fromthe deputy clerk and finance officerwhich the responses to the council’s invitation to tender for a one-year contract to clean andmaintain the Bell Lane toilets.


AHONDAAccord parked in LintonHill, Linton,was burnt out after aman threw something over it and set the vehicle alight. He then ran into thewoods. Themanwas described aswhite, in his early 20s, about 5ft 7in, of slimbuild,with short hair and a moustache. In Coxheath, a blue generatorwas stolen


froma building site inHeath Road. Two further generatorswere stolen froma site in Heath Road on a separate occasion. ARenault Scenic parked in StationHill,


East Farleigh,was keyed along its passenger side. A1953 Vincent Rapidemotorcyclewas


stolen froma garage in Pembroke Road, Coxheath. The garage lock had been broken and the door levered open. A6ft x 6ft shrubwas removed from


outside a property in LintonHill, Linton. Thieves stole an iPhone and jewellery


after breaking into a property inGooseneck Lane,Headcorn.


Itwas agreed to accept the bid of £7,172.20 fromPaxman Services. Community payback Itwas agreed that, subject to clarification of drafting points raised by Cllr Silkin and the clerk, the clerk should sign the revisedworking agreement with the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Community Rehabilitation Company. Paradeworks Councillors discussed the proposedworks to be undertaken by Kent Highways. They resolved to tell KCC they agreedwith the proposals, but did express regret for the removal of the old trees and asked that robust replacements of a good size be planted. Donations Itwas agreed to donate £50 to both the Youth Club and theWI for their supportwith the village clean-up,which took place onMarch 10.


West Farleigh


Speedwatch Itwas noted that only two volunteers had come forward to assistwith Speedwatch,with an article set to go in the next village email in the hope of drumming upmore support. Highways issues Resurfacingwork in Ewell Lane had been postponed due to the recent badweather. The clerk had also been in contactwithHighways regarding the purchase of an ‘Unsuitable forHGVs’ sign forHunt Street. There had been some difficulty so after discussion itwas agreed to approach the Royal British Legion directly to purchase the signs. Village green The replacement posts had been installed on the green.A picnic bench was set to be installed, and the fingerpost sign to be refurbished,while the stone and verge damagewas to be reinstated.A benchwas also to be repaired and Cllr Merri� asked if recycled plastic slats could be purchased rather thanwooden and all councillorswere in agreement, so the clerk was to investigate and CllrMerri�would send across the sizes. In BloomCllr Sco� had been approached regarding the South East in Bloom competition,with three areas the organiserswanted to plant up. Therewas


much discussion surrounding the various areas and itwas all to be fed back to the organisers by CllrMorgan. Website Cllr Swan reported on a village websitemeetingwhere itwas suggested that theywould like to addmaps to the site showing footpaths etc in the village. They also suggested upgrading the noticeboards to include QR codes for smartphones.After a discussion overwho owns the boards, Cllr Swan offered to investigate further. Treewarden CllrMerri� hadmetwith Ed Boydwho has offered to be the village tree warden. Ed is very enthusiastic andwants to learn asmuch as he can about the trees in the village. CllrMerri�was to forward his details to the clerk. Coffeemorning Cllr Swan suggested the next coffeemorning be held on Saturday June 16. The clerkwould informthe communitywarden Lambing day Cllr Sco� thanked Cllr Martin, Candy and Ollie for arranging such a fun Lambing Day, especially at such a busy time of year. The event had raised more than £1,000. Thankswere also offered to Larry Johnson,who had run the hotdog stall for the parish council. Meeting roomCllr Sco� and Borough Councillor BrianMortimer had a�ended a planningmeeting atMBC to discuss the proposed building of ameeting roomat the Sports Club.MBCwould not have any issues and if the roomwas slightly smaller the councilwould only need building regulations, rather than full planning permission. Cllr Sco� said itwas a very positivemeeting and all thatwas needed nowwas permission fromthe landowner. Missing bin Cllr Sco� reported that the li�er bin on Teston Lane oppositeMill Lane had disappeared. The clerk offered to discuss thiswithMBC. Donation requests Itwas agreed to give £350 toAll Saints Church towards their groundsmaintenance, £600 to the Evergreens and £250 to The FarleighsWI to help themwithwork on their kitchen and replacement soffits. Itwas decided not to give a grant to Yalding Parish Council for their play scheme as no children fromWest Farleigh a�ended last year.


NeighbourhoodWatch


Working to reduce crime. Call Crimestoppers 0800 555 111 or local police In LenhamRoad,Headcorn, drilling


equipment (augers andmotors)was stolen froma building site. Awhite Ford Transitminibus (registration


GD07***)was stolen fromthe car park at an airfield in Shenley Road,Headcorn. Thieves broke into and ransacked a


property inWheeler Street,Headcorn. Money andwatcheswere among items taken. Acaravan and a Land Roverwere found


burnt out, inWindmillHill,Ulcombe. Jewellerywas stolenwhen a property in


RoundelWay,Marden,was broken into. In Benover Road, Yalding, aMercedes


Benz Sprinterwas taken fromthe road. Ablack road pecker JCB attachmentwas stolen froma roadworks site in Chantry


Road,Marden. Awindowat a house in Tilden Lane,


Marden,was damaged by three people shooting something into the nearby trees froma car. Equine equipmentwas stolen froma


stable building inMaidstone Road,Marden. Horses in a fieldwere let loose but later rounded up, unharmed. Asilver Ford Transit van (registration


LV61***)was stolen fromLodge Road, Staplehurst. The vehiclewas later found burnt out. Acouncil salt binwas stolen fromPinnock


Lane, Staplehurst. Ashort haired domestic tabby catwas


attacked and killed in TheHarbour play area, SuttonValence.


Maidstone Weald April 2018 37


Parish Councils


Crime reports


Parish Councils


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