News Bridge drama


man rescued AMANwho threatened to throw himself off a railway bridge in Maidstone sparked amajor police response and a traffic diversion. The 999 scramble came after he


was spotted with his legs dan- gling over the side of the crossing in Sittingbourne Road, at about 11.20amon February 6. Cars were diverted from the


scene while Kent Police attended and handed the matter to British Transport Police. An eye-witness said: “Hewas a


big, young lad and a couple of people had him by the arms try- ing to stop him from going over the side of the bridge. They were gently talking to him. “They or someone else eventu-


ally got him down and it made me think that there are people out there in our community who need a bit of help. I felt sorry for the lad.” British Transport Police were


able to restrain the man and he was taken away.


Museumfun


YOUNGSTERS are being invited to bring the past to life at half- term by making Egyptian mum- mies and Roman helmets. School kids who sign up for


Maidstone Museum’s “Make It” workshops will also be shown howto create volcanoes. There will be four sessions a


day, at 10.30am, noon, 1.30pmand 3pmon Tuesday, February 19. For more details, visit https://mu- seum.maidstone.gov.uk/


Ceilidh date


THE streets ofAllingtonwill echo with the lively tones ofGaelic folk when St Nicholas’s Church hosts a ceilidh onMarch 1. Organisers


promise “an


evening of fun and dancing” to raise funds for the Poplar Grove church’s Loos and Lights cam- paign. Tickets are £5 each or £15 for a


family. For more details, contact the parish office on 01622 299715.


Mexican night


PARISHIONERS in Barming set out to raise money for India by hosting aMexican night. They donned sombreros and


headed for St Margaret’s Church on January 27 to secure £450 in support of theDelhi Brotherhood.


28 Maidstone March 2019


downsmail.co.uk


Extra police to hit the streets, reveals PCC


KENT Police plan to recruit 180more officers in the coming year, using funds raised by the Police and Crime Commissioner,MatthewScott.


ThePCCsays the number of full-


time officers in Kent will increase to 3,632, returning the force to 96% of its peak strength froma decade ago. OnWednesday, February 6, Mr


Scott’s budget plans were unani- mously approved by the Kent and Medway Police and Crime Panel. As well as increasing officer


numbers, Kent Police’s 300 police community support officers have also again been protected. Mr Scott told panel members at


the meeting in Maidstone: “Resi- dents want to see more police out on the street andtopay for that I’m increasing the council tax by £2 a month for an average band D property. This has been supported by 60%of people acrossmore than 5,000 pieces of consultation feed- back.” Adding that itwas not adecision


taken lightly, the PCCsaid: “These plans are not just about asking for more money. I’ve asked Kent Po- lice to continue their drive to be as efficient and effective as possible, without putting frontline services at risk. Theywillmake £9.7million of savings over the next year. “This, combined with the use of


reserves to continue the improve- ments we’ve seen in performance within the Force Control Room, will enable the Chief Constable to look to recruit another 180 fully-


PCCMatthew Scott and Chief Constable Alan Pughsley


warranted police constables next year. “That is in addition to replacing


those who leave or retire, and en- ablesus to retain the 270 additional officers recruited since I was elected in 2016.” Mr Scott stressed it would be


down to theChiefConstable tode- termine exactly how and where these additional officers would be deployed. But Mr Scott said 90 would go


into local policing roles and90 into crime investigation teams, to tackle issues likedomestic abuse andsex- ual violence. He added: ‘They (officers and


staff)do tremendousworkdaily to keep us all safe. They don’t know


what incidents they are going to be going to, what challenges they might be facing, or what dangers they might be presented with. In- creased demand pressures have had an impact on them. “I believe this recruitment plan


sends an importantmessage – that they are not alone.We understand what they are going through and we want to see extra colleagues working alongside them and sup- porting them.” KentPoliceChiefConstableAlan


Pughsley said: “We have already started towelcome our first intake ofnewofficers,whowere recruited last year. Many of them have al- ready started making a difference in the communities they serve.”


Inspection praise for care firm


CARERS offering personal help in the home to the elderly, de- pendents and the disabled in Maidstone have earned praise fromaGovernment inspector. TheCareQualityCommission


visited MyLife Home Care on theAshfordRoad. Itwasprovid- ing home help to 25 clients, in- cluding older adults, younger disabled adults, children and peoplewith drug and alcohol is- sues. TheCQCfoundgoodpractices


in operation across the board. The inspectionteamfounda reg- istered manager in place and trained staff who understood


their responsibility to protect people fromharmand abuse. The reportnoted: “Clients told


us they felt safe with staff from MyLifeHomeCareMaidstone.” Potential risksweremitigated


and contingency plans limited disruption to people’s care dur- ing emergency situations, such as badweather. Staff were employed on the


basis that they were suitable to workwithpeople, andtherewas enoughof themto fulfilpeople’s assessed care needs. Medicines were administered


by trained staff and steps taken toprotect others fromany riskof


infection and cross-contamina- tion. The inspector also noted that new staff sat an induction course and then worked along- side experienced colleagues be- foreworking alone. As well as having their as-


sessed needs met, the CQC noted that clients also received emotional support, adding: “Staff knew people well and were aware of their likes, dis- likes and personal histories. “Peoplewere treatedwithdig-


nity, respect and their privacy wasmaintained.Staffwerekind, caring and promoted people’s independence.”


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