Town Talk


THE rarely-usedMulti-UseGames Area (MUGA) at Potyns Sports Ground is to become a 3G pitch. Mel Rayfield, the recently-retired


chairman of Snodland Town Foot- ball Club, said: “This is great news, not only for the town’s foot- ballers who desperately need a training facility in Snodland, but also other groups who will be able to make use of a safe, user- friendly and secure area. “The existing surface of the


MUGA is too slippery and danger- ous for most types of sports, and consequently usage and income has dropped over the past few years.” He added that quotations for the


work had been received from a number of expert companies and the new surface would be up and running by the end of September. Snodland Town Council is fi-


nancing the work, and chief exec- utive Karen Sowten said: “We are always looking to update our leisure facilities in the town and this will be a hugely popular addi- tion to those already provided at


Sing for church “A BIT of a sing” will be raising money for Christ Church Commu- nity Hall in Snodland on June 23. Snodland and Wateringbury


parish churches comes together for the combined fund-raising event at St John the Baptist Church in Wa- teringbury. Proceeds from the performance,


which will include voices from across the A20 and the Watering- bury Players in a sing-a-long of songs from the musicals, will be shared between the two churches. Tickets are £7, with £5 for con-


cessions. Refreshments will be available. The evening starts at 7pm. For details call 01634 244872 or email jjoverall@btinternet.com.


Music festival ADAMBarron fromThe Voicewill be among the headline acts at the Park Lifemusic festival at Kings Hill. Other acts at Kings Hill Sports


Park will include Get Carter, The Mofos and Lucia Loren. Tickets for the event at 1pm on


Saturday, July 21 are £15 from the community centre and sports park offices or £20 on the door. Chil- dren’s tickets are £5 and £8. The event will be supporting


Kings Hill Sports Park and the Ro- tary Club.


Mobility help A MOBILITY scooter and a wheel- chair are available for use by resi- dents at Snodland Cemetery. To book either, call 01634 240228


between 9amand 3pm,Monday to Friday.


Potyns. We know that there is a high demand both by residents and others in the local area to book these safe playing sur- faces.” Dave Jeal, the football club’s


current chairman, warmly wel- comed the news and said that


parents have to take their children to neighbouring villages for them to train, and this would cut down on their expense and travelling. “We have worked closely with


the town council on this project and are delighted that they have now confirmed that they will be


undertaking the work,” he said. “Withmore than 16 teams wish-


ing to use the facility, we will be of- fering an immediate income and support for the long-term use of the pitch, and feel certain that it will be a huge success for the town.”


Networking evening a success


REPRESENTATIVES from 35 local businesses attended a free business networking evening at the offices of Snodland Town Council. The event was organised in


partnership by Tonbridge & Malling Borough Council, the town council and Barclays Bank. It provided an opportunity for


people to meet others from a range of businesses in the com- munity and pick up important business-relevant information at the same time. Cheryl Edwards, business re-


lationship manager for Barclays Bank, gave a presentation de- signed to help businesses en- sure that they are compliant with the new General Data Projection Regulations, which came into force on May 25. Nicolas Heslop, leader of the


borough council, said: “These events are aimed at helping dis-


Siju Thomas, businessmanager at Barlays; business relationsmanger Cheryl Edwards, TMBC leaderNicolasHeslop andDebbie King, town council chairman


cussion amongst the local busi- ness community and the council and I am delighted that so many businesses went along. “The presentation on the new General Data Projection Regula-


tions was particularly useful and timely, and I look forward to working with Barclays and Snod- land Town Council to organise similar events in the coming months.”


Debbie is newchairman


THE new chairman of Snodland Town Council is Debbie King, who lives in Holborough Road. She succeeds Peter Misy, who


died in April. Sue Bell, who lives in Tom Joyce


Close, was elected vice-chairman and Mark Sawkins, of Alisander Close, was elected to the new posi- tion of deputy vice-chairman, which


has been introduced “to aid with succession planning and for the in- cumbent to gain experience within the role”. The chairmen of the council's


three main committees were re- elected as follows:David Purll – Pol- icy and Resources; Paul Hickmott – Planning and Environment; David Keeley – Amenities and Recreation.


Mallling June 2018 23


Local news for Snodland and Halling All-weather pitch plan welcomed


downsmail.co.uk


Op Stack solution elusive with Brexit on the horizon


DEPARTMENT for Transport bosses have admitted that finding a permanent solution toOperation Stack is proving harder than first anticipated. With less than a year to go before


theUK leaves the EuropeanUnion, anxieties are growing that therewill be regular standstills on theM20 if a deal is not struck byMarch 2019. According to a source close to the


DfT, Highways England (HE), the agency taskedto finda solution pre- Brexit, is exploring all permanent possibilities, including a lorry park and even a continuation of Opera- tion Stack. We understand that, as temporary


measures,HE plans to use the hard shoulder of theM20, bring theM26 into commission or create a freight holding area nearWhitfield,Dover. Last year, the then Port of Dover


chief executive Tim Waggott warned of 17-mile queues either side of the Channel if the two- minute average freight processing time per vehicle is increased after Brexit. About 10,000 freight move-


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ments pass through the Port of Dover each day.Observers arewor- ried that queues of lorries will stretch back to Maidstone, causing misery to residents and businesses on the alternativeA20 route. Villages aroundMaidstonemight


also suffer severe congestion. No avenues to permanently solve


the absence of a lorry park have proved successful, a source close to theDfT told us. The source added: “The clock is


ticking and it seems that the solu- tion toOperation Stack ismoreOp-


eration Stack. It has been in place for three decades and no solution has been found.What are the chances it is going to happen in 12 months? Some politicians don’t get howlong this has been going on and are con- tinuing to bury their heads in the sand. “Theymight discover to their cost


howpolitically toxic thismight turn out to be.” But DownsMail has learned that


in anticipation of issues, Highways England will start to reinforce the hard shoulder between junctions eight (LeedsCastle/Maidstone) and junction nine (Ashford). The work is due to be finished byOctober. This temporary measure would


create the capacity for 3,000 lorries. If traffic is likely to back up be-


yond the capacity of the M20, the DfT has indicated itwould consider using theM26 (which links theM20 and theM25). The Department for Transport


spokesman said: “The department will be consulting on a permanent solution in due course.”


News Sentence plan


to helpwomen A NEW approach to keeping women out of jail is being put to the test inMaidstone. Judges will now have the option


of sentencing female offenders to a six-week intensive supervision order thatwill offer themsupport to tackle housing, training or other problems that drive offending. The trial is conducted by Kent,


Surrey and Sussex Community Re- habilitation Company (KSS CRC). The pilot follows new evidence


that shows women are more likely to be jailed for their offences. Upto 50probation officerswill re-


ceive the newtraining,with the first qualifying in July. KSS CRC head of rehabilitation


Claire Jones says it is hoped it will address the causes of women’s of- fending before they are sentencedto custody and so reduce harmto their families and thewider community. Former offender SandraWeir said:


“Local authorities kick women sent to prison out of their homes.Others have their children taken away and still more are unable to get into training, education or work. I hope this approach helpswomen to solve their problems before they end up behind bars.”


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