News


downsmail.co.uk Grieving parents’ island ordeal


AGRIEF-stricken Snodland couple,mourning the loss of their newborn baby, have told howthey were stranded on a holiday island and leftwith a hugemedical bill. Chloe Sullivan andMichael Par-


rott, pictured right, had been taken to a hospital in the Dominican Re- public amid concerns for their un- born baby. Chloe underwent an emergency


caesarean section on arrival,which doctors performed despite her in- surance not covering the full treat- ment. After the surgery, doctors placed


babyArlo into a neonatal ward on Sunday, October 14. He died the following day. Miss Sullivan was forced to pay


£16,000 towards medical bills be- fore she could return home with her fiancé and four-year-old daughter. Mr Parrott’s cousin, Harry Cot-


tam, from Hextable, set up an on- line fundraiser on October 17 to raise the funds. The GoFundMe page read:


“Their hearts are broken and they just want to get home. However, the hospital have refused to let themleave until they pay themed-


Village panto


LEYBOURNE gets a taste of Nev- erland this November when Tin- kerbell, Captain Hook andWendy land in the village. The Peter Pan touring theatre


will bring the J M Barrie classic to life at the village hall on Sunday, November 25. Tickets for the per- formances at 1pm and 5pm are £5 for adults and £1 for children. Phone 01732 873722.


Quiz night


PARISHIONERS are invited to tax their brains and bring a bottle to a Wine and Wisdom Evening at St Nicholas Church Hall,Allington. Organisers are looking for teams


of eight for the event on Saturday, November 17. The entry fee of £5 per head will include nibbles, but competitors will have to take their own drinks. Call 01622 756660.


Not forgoen


MORE than 3,000 poppies knitted by villagers in Ryarshwill adorn St Martin’s Church tower during a weekend of remembrance starting on November 10. On November 11, a service will


see silhouettes representing the 17 men from the village who died in WWI seated in the congregation.


12 Malling November 2018


ical fee, which has now increased to over $20,000 (£16,000). “They physically do not have


that kind of money nor can they access it easily. Chloe andMichael asked if the hospital would allow themto pay in instalments and the hospital refused, keeping them in


a room surrounded by security and police. Chloe has her four- year-old daughter with her, I can- not imagine how scared she must have felt.” In less than 24 hours, the Go-


FundMe page had smashed the £17,000 target, thanks to generous


donations fromfamily, friends and strangers. When the total reached £20,000,


Miss Sullivan thanked donors on Facebook with a post reading: “We just want to say thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, to all of our family, friends and peo- ple who we don’t know who have generously donated to allowus the opportunity to receive back my and Arlo’s medical records, my passport and the medication I need to allowme on a flight home. “I cannot believe howamazingly


kind people can be.We are incred- ibly lucky to have so much sup- port from you all. In a very dark and hard time, you have helped to shine a little ray of light and given us the breathing space to start to grieve for our son.” It was confirmed that Arlo had


died of persistent pulmonary hy- pertension, congenital heart dis- ease,


respiratory distress


syndrome, respiratory insuffi- ciency and a chromosome defect.


Mayor of Tonbridge andMalling PamBates joins youngsters in the council chamber at Kings Hill Pupils join council chamber debate


PUPILS from the three primary schools in Snodland met theMayor of Tonbridge & Malling, Pam Bates, in the council chamber at Kings Hill. The children from St Katherine's,


the Church of England school and Valley Invicta at Holborough Lakes, were among 51 pupils from 12 schools across the borough. The aim was to give youngsters


the chance to learn more about local government and to express views on issues thatmatter to them. After the debate, the mayor


showed the young people around her parlour, where she hosts many events and meetings throughout the year, and chatted with them. Cllr Bates said: “It was a pleasure


to meet such a confident and elo- quent group of young people at what proved to be a very thought- provoking debate. They raised some excellent points and I was very im- pressed with the way they listened to each other and respected every- one’s views.” There were debates about plastic


and whether parents should be al- lowed to take their children on holi- day in termtime. The voting was:  Should we stop using plastic and re-use items? Yes 39 votes, No 12.  Do we need more laws to tackle plastic pollution? Yes 46, No 5. Should parents be allowed to take their children on holiday during term time? Yes 26, No 25.


MrsGrummet, fromValley Invicta


School, said: "Itwas very exciting for the children tomeet themayor and take part in a real-life debate in the council chamber. “They raised some really good


points about plastics and their harmful effect on the environment and it was also interesting to hear their thoughts about term-time hol- idays. “This was a very thought-provok-


ing day and we are delighted to have had the chance to take part.” The other schoolswhich took part


were Slade, Woodlands, Brookfield Junior, Fosse Bank, Wateringbury, More Park, Valley Invicta at Ley- bourne Chase and Kings Hill.


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