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LEEDS Castle, which has lost millions in rev- enues in the Covid-19 pandemic, has welcomed over 50,000 visitors since it re-opened in June.
Management said it is now re- liant on the local market to bring people through the gates, as tourist activity has all but dried up.
Overseas visitors, many of whom travel from London or from cruise ships docked at the Port of Dover – are virtually non- existent this year. Earlier this summer, the charity which runs Leeds Castle an- nounced it was looking to make 62 members of staff redundant, in an effort to balance the books. Writing in the local parish newsletter, head of operations and tourism Shane Guy said that the recent numbers of visitors was still roughly half of what came in during last year’s hugely success- ful 900th birthday celebrations. Mr Guy said: “With there being
very little tourist business and no overseas visitors, we are very
Six conduct
complaints SIX complaints against the conduct of parish councillors have been considered by the borough council in the last six months.
These include separate allega-
tions of bullying, bringing the of- fice into disrepute, a disclosable pecuniary interest, preventing ac- cess to information, intimidation, breach of confidentiality and im- proper use of information. Two complaints led to informal resolutions with a written apology, training and a parish council apol- ogy; one to further training for the parish chairman and the clerk; one complaint was rejected; and two are under consideration. One complaint was made against a borough councillor alleg- ing a conflict of interest and con- duct bringing the office into disrepute. No breach of the code was established.
Stations shut
MAIDSTONE travellers wanting to use Eurostar will have to board in London.
The train operator has an- nounced Ashford and Ebbsfleet in- ternational stations, shut since March, will be closed until 2022.
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‘Hard times’ ahead at castle Day out for NHS
much reliant on our local market to come and support the charity through difficult times. “The words ‘track and trace’ are fast becoming as natural as ‘please and thank you’. “Although visitors are being asked to book an arrival reserva- tion online, this does not always mean that we won’t have some small queues at the ticket office as we book everyone in.” He added: “Hard times are still
ahead for the (Leeds Castle) foun- dation, but we are making steady progress in trying to find the ‘new normal’ – something we are try- ing to do in 2020.”
The castle’s management has
not yet appointed a new chief ex- ecutive to replace former Royal Navy chief Sir David Steel, who left earlier this year after five years in the role. He took up the role as Governor of Gibraltar in
LEEDS Castle is to open its doors to 2,500 NHS staff as a thank you for their work on the frontline of the Covid-19 pandemic. The free NHS Wellbeing Day on
Saturday, September 26, will see “the loveliest castle in the world” wel- come staff and their families for a well-deserved day after a gruelling six months tackling the virus. Leeds Castle chairman Niall Dick-
son said he hoped the visitors would have a wonderful time. He said: “We are all aware and in
awe of what local NHS staff have done for our community, and our aim is to create a very special day in this very special place. “We know the experience of visit-
ing the castle and its estate can be so uplifting and can do great things for our mental health and wellbeing. Who better to enjoy this than hard- working NHS staff and their long- suffering families?” Staff can apply for their free tick- ets through their NHS organisation.
Silver awards for family’s wines
A FAMILY-run vineyard in Hollingbourne has won a silver award at a national competition. The Wine GB award was given
to Wayfarers Vineyard. All three of the vineyard’s nominated wines were awarded silver awards The judges were Susie Barrie, Oz Clarke and Rebecca Palmer. MP Helen Whatley, who is
also the minister of state for care was shown around the vineyard last month by owners Matt Ash- ford, Karen Kearns and Emma Ashford.
£1.5m for air ambulance
THE Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (KSS) has raised £1.5million after launching an emergency ap- peal during lockdown. At the start of the pandemic, the life-saving charity faced a shortfall of over £2.9million. The team got behind the 30 for 30 challenge, which sees volunteers and em- ployees collectively walk 30 million steps to mark its 30th anniversary. KSS also recently won the na- tional charity of the year award or- ganised by Charity Times. KSS’s CEO, David Welch, said
“We couldn’t be prouder of what we have collectively achieved, but safeguarding the future of KSS re- mains our priority. We still need to address our £1.4m shortfall to en- sure we can continue to save lives. “We are are urging people to get behind our 30 for 30 Challenge, ei- ther by doing a challenge or spon- soring those who are taking part.” To take part in the challenge, email
hello@aakss.org.uk. For more information about Air Am- bulance Kent Surrey Sussex, visit
www.aakss.org.uk.
Park popular VISITOR numbers to Cobtree
Manor Park have been high since it re-opened to vehicles in May, following the Coronavirus pan- demic lockdown, Maidstone Bor- ough Council reports. Events such as the beer festival, apple weekend, Halloween and fireworks are scheduled to re- sume.
Some play equipment has had to be removed for repairs, ex- pected to cost £10,000. The golf course is also reported to have had a busy summer.
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