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Highways Cllr Sams said potholeswere constantly being reported, although Kent Highways said not all of themmet the criteria for repair. Complaints had been received fromresidents at Pilgrims Retreat regarding the state of the road and they had requested that passing places be put in place. Residents at theGarden of England said the bus stop is not big enough for the bus, resulting in it having to stick out on to theA20. Thiswas to be discussedwith one of the teammemberswho oversawtheA20 improvements scheme. School parking CllrGriffiths said there had been several nearmisses due to the issues of parking aroundHarrietshamPrimary School. Itwas noted that the bus had been delayed for 25minutes due to inappropriate parking by parents. Cllr Sams said ameeting had been heldwith the governors,MBC and KentHighways,which Cllr Sams suggested should be revisited. The communitywarden added thatOperation Cactuswas due to take place inMay,where various schools were to be visited, and suggested that police be asked to addHarrietshamto the list. Memberships The council agreed to renew itsmemberships to the KentAssociation of Local Councils andActionwith Communities in Rural Kent, at costs of £887 and £50 respectively. GDPR The clerkwas to circulate new policies and privacy noticeswhichwould need to be agreed ahead of the regulations coming in inMay. She had also found another company – Local Council Public Advisory Service – to take on the data protection officer’s role. Village hall The village hall chairman had askedwhowould represent the council on the VillageHall Trust. CllrMoore had offered to continue, but therewere no other volunteers for the remaining two places that could be filled, so itwas agreed that Cllr Moorewould remain the sole representative. Big Lunch Cllr Sams had visited new residents in Saxon Placewho said they would like to get involved, so itwas suggested that a street party-style Big Lunch be held on the site. The Scoutswished to be involved too. Leafletswould be delivered to thewhole village,with the Big Lunch commi�ee still involved and a hope that newpeoplewould get involved andmight want to join other village organisations.


A VEHICLE parked on a driveway in Hill Brow, Bearsted, had its frontwindow smashed. Some antique itemswere stolen froma


break-in at a house in LenhamHeath Road, Lenham. The rear number platewas stolen froman


AudiQ5 parked in BirlingAvenue, Bearsted. Ashed at a house in LambertDrive,


Otham,was broken into. Abench in Fauchons Lane, Bearsted,was


damaged in an a�empt to steal it. Agreen Polaris quad bikewas stolen


when a barn at a farmin The Street, Bredhurst,was broken into. Alawnbowlsbagcontainingfourbowls and


shoeswas stolen froma Peugeot Expert parked inMallingsDrive, Bearsted. Acar parked in an allocated parking bay


Ringlestone InnDue to issueswith the change of licensee, the Ringlestone Innwas to be auctioned in June. Insurers had stipulated that itmust be boarded up in the meantime to prevent squa�ers or damage. Concrete circleAresident askedwhether the concrete circle by the Indian restaurant could be removed as itwas being filled up with rubbish and dogmess. Three councillors had already emptied it andwere planning to break it up. Li�er-picking Li�er pickerswere praised by a resident for theirwork in the village,with councillors agreeing that theA20 looked lovely. Cllr Powell said the council also appreciatedAudrey’s hardwork on that stretch of road. Welcome book Itwas confirmed that new residents to the village do receive awelcome book.Aresident asked if fingerpost signs could be added around the village so that people knewwhere to go for different organisations. CllrDean said thiswould be difficult as some are run frompeople’s homes. Itwas also felt thiswould be very expensive and groupswould have to fund this themselves. CllrMoore saidmany villageswere trying to reduce the amount of street furniture. Itwas noted thatmany of the groups have Facebook pages and websites that residents can visit. Empty properties The council said they could not get involvedwith the old school site, described by a resident as an eyesore. Cllr Sams added that at a fullMBCmeeting she had raised the issue of empty properties in the village to see if they could be compulsorily purchased – some had been empty for 10 years. TheHousing Commi�ee, however, stated that none of themcould come under the order because most of themhave probate or other issues.


Lenham


Toilet hopeArequestwas received to re- open the toilets for themarket. The council confirmed that providing repairswere complete, the buildingwould be in use. Dog fouling Issueswere raised by a resident about dog-fouling. The councilwas to organise notices fromMBC Community Protection in identified problematic areas. Transport Board The Pla�sHeath Road


Improvement Scheme andHarrietsham’s A20 consultationwill both be presented to the Joint Transportation Board in July after theAprilmeetingwas cancelled. It is hoped works on theA20will start inAugust. TrafficmeasuresAresident asked about traffic calming plans. Councillors outlined the nowadopted speed detection scheme, extra road signage andmarkings at theHam Lane andHigh Street junction, aswell as corres-pondencewith KCC about improvements to the FavershamRoad/A20 junction. Co-option John Bri� formally joined the council as amember of the southward. Street lighting Cllr Scrivenswas tomeet with the street lighting company for advice on repair or renewal of lamps at Sandway and Pla�sHeath. Following the quote, an overviewof futuremaintenancewas to be discussed. Neighbourhood Plan Cllr Cocke� reported that the grant for the traffic survey had been secured and the tender processwas due to begin. The issue of future education provisionwas being discussedwith KCC, whilemeetingswith landowners and agents had enabled firmproposals for options and methods ofmoving to a newrecreation ground.Avaluation of theWilliamPi� Field was to be organised, and a small sub- commi�eewas to be formed including officials fromLenhamWanderers FC. Itwas noted that post 2031 there is a possibility of more development that had to be kept in mind and could not be ignored. Picnic site CllrOsborne recommended that the north hedge at the CherryDowns picnic site is cut in autumn, and a newpadlock and chainwere to be placed on the gate at the site as extra security. MaidstoneRoadCllrGreenwoodwas to organise a sitemeeting to confirmtreeworks next to the car park atMaidstone Road and reported that the RoytonAvenueworks should be completed inMay. The designated parking spaces formembers of theUnited ReformedChurch in theMaidstone Road car parkwere no longer in place. Nursery school CllrOsborne hadmetwith the nursery school to discuss the possibility of providing a nursery on the top site at HamLane allotments. CllrsGreenwood, Ratcliffe, Bri� andOsbornewere to forma sub-commi�ee to pursue this project.


NeighbourhoodWatch Working to reduce crime. Call Crimestoppers 0800 555 111 or local police


inWillowRise,Downswood,was found with one of itswindows smashed. Abarn at a farmin LenhamHeath Road,


Lenham,was broken into. The rear quarter lightwindowon a car


parked in CopsewoodWay, Bearsted,was smashed but no entrywasmade to the vehicle. The number plateswere stolen froma


Vauxhall Corsa parked inGrovewoodDrive South,Weavering. AFordMondeo parked in a residents’ car


park in Badger Road, Boxley, had its rear number plate stolen. Amotorbikewas takenwithout consent


fromStWelcumesWay,Harrietsham. Avehicle parked at a residential property


inHeadcorn Road, Lenham,was broken into. AredHonda TRX500 quad bikewas


stolen froma garden in LenhamHeath Road, Lenham. Electricity cableswere stolen froma sub-


station in CrossDrive,Kingswood. Aroad rollerwas damaged and therewas


an a�empted theft of amini digger in Hospital Road,Hollingbourne. A5kVAdiesel generatorwas stolen from


a building site inMaidstone Road, Lenham.


Maidstone East June 2018 35


Parish Councils


Crime reports


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