downsmail.co.uk Maidstone East Edition Maidstone & Malling’s No. 1 newspaper Maidstone South Edition downsmail.co.uk FREEMaidstone & Malling’s No. 1 newspaper No. 246 October 2017 FREE News February 2020 No. 274 Panto ahoy! Kate, 107, dies THE cast of Cinderella, which is to be KATE Hart, a resident at an old staged at the Hazlitt Theatre in Maid- people’s home in Bearsted, stone, took to the River Medway to News has died aged 107, her son 3 launch this year's panto. David has disclosed. BrockOn board The Kentishgoing, Lady were but will Stack be back? New Line success OPERATION Brock may be in the process of being dis- viable option, say transport chiefs. Op Stack has been national treasure Rustie Lee (Fairy NEW Line Learning Academy is mantled but the spectre of Operation Stack now looms deployed for decades when the ports are out of action Godmother), former EastEnder Ste- MP’scelebrating Local after Planachieving bid a large. because of weather or French industrial action. fan Booth (Prince Charming), Eliza- HELEN“good” Whately rating by asked watch- the The M20 contraflow will be taken out of commission For much of 2019, a 15-mile stretch of the motorway beth Bright (Cinderella), Craig governmentdog Ofsted. to halt the à3 untilAnderson the end (Buttons) of the year and, as the pictured, UK prepares to formally was restricted to two lanes with a 50mph speed in case borough’s housing scheme. 4 leaveStephen the EU.Richards and Adam Bor- of a no-deal Brexit. zoneBut (Uglythe system Sisters) of "stacking". HGVs on the M20 when Brock is scheduled to have been removed by Invicta bulb planting cross-ChannelThey were greetedservices byare pupils out of actionfrom is likely to be a the beginning of February. à15 STUDENTSPlans for from Dr Invicta Nigel Gram- South Borough Primary School and marTHE havewidow been of GP planting Dr Nigel Minnet members of the media. The panto bulbswill walk in Motethe Grand Park. à8 runs from December 1-31. For tick- Canyon for charity. 12 ets go to www.hazlitttheatre.co.uk. Housing crisis latest Battle to stop building JasonAS THE Maidstone Donovan housing date THEcrisis former deepens, Neighbours read our star two-page brings special on the his show to the Hazlitt willCCTV go to call Westminster in a bid Theatrepeople’s next rebellion. May. à18-1918 Mother in court A MOTHER’S life spiralled out of THE people’s fight to save Maidstone from over-development has taken control into drink and crime after a twist as councillors agreed to take the issue straight to Government. her partner cheated on to stop fly-tipping her, a court heard. à28 It is hoped pressure can be ap- Martin Cox, argued that the “call pliedCALLS on the for housing the minister installation via of CCTV cameras to preventfor sites” fly-tipping process should on be a expe- Obituaries à34 directcountry interventions road have from been local made by the local boroughdited councillor. for legal process reasons, MPs Helen Grant and Helen but without unsuitable proposals. Parishes à36 WhatelyBurberry in the Lane, new near parliament. Leeds and nearby, more than a year after it unlicensedResidents waste should carriers, be able but to be-ex- Broomfield,The charge has was been led targeted by the by was dumped and set on fire. lievespress thetheir cost toviews small firmsand ofMBC dis- RESIDENTS were pleased to the leaderwaste dumpersof the Conservative for years, but oppo- in re- The church car park has also seen posingshould ofwork construction with other waste councils, at a Obituariesthe re-appearance of a burger32 sition,cent months, Cllr John the Perry, problem who has said be- many instances of illegal dumping. transferespecially station KCC, is provingand MPs a deter- to van in a Barming layby, but thecome borough more acute. council must argue But it is a problem in many rural rentlobby that government is costing councils departments. more. Parishmembers Councils were concerned34-35 that Construction waste, rubble, hard areas including Langley, Otham CllrThere Fort will made be an herattempt remarks to “re- as housing targets cannot be met MPs Helen Grant and Helen Whately ASHno notice dieback was has received been discovered from the in “withoutcore, windows adversely and household affecting the fur- and Kingswood. Water Lane in onevise ofthe the (Government) borough’s closest standard trans- licensing officer; a number of niture is left illegally – often strewn Bearsted and Pilgrims Way have fer stations at North Farm, Tun- Monks Meadow in Detling; residents”. yond the 17,600 already agreed in methodology” for calculating salt bins in Tovil were yet to be in the middle of the road. also been targeted recently. Hollingbourne village fete stall- Members of Lib Dem-led Maid- the 2017 Local Plan. However, bridgehousing Wells, numbers announced which, it say will the be filled; the community warden in Cllr Gill Fort said: “Every month Last year, Maidstone Borough closed for 10 weeks. holder co-ordinator Jean Duffy has stone Borough Council (MBC) this was shelved in favour of Cllr Tories, would “be impossible to resigned;Loose reported yellow itlines is a are busy needed time we are having toilets, sinks and Council cleared 911 cases of fly-tip- She added: “If you go along the agreed to back the Tory plan at Perry’s motion. deliver”. forfor Buffkynwelfare Way,visits; Otham a volunteer, to allow has construction waste dumped in the ping and this year more than 163 line of increasing fines, they have to full council on December 18. It was felt a suspension would Cllr Perry won consent for a busesbeen foundthrough to Imperialupdate Park; rub- village, specifically in Burberry have been recorded since April. be enforced. A reduction in the MBC was due to debate a mo- halt the legal process irrevocably, cross-party letter to the secretary bishnoticeboards bins in thein sports. field in Lane, where we are now thinking The approaching darker evenings charge or offering it free may have Tovil tion by independent councillors leaving MBC open to losing is of state regarding the size of the Kingswood are to be moved over to of installing cameras on private will prompt a rise in illegal tipping. the desired similar effect.” Janetta Sams and Eddie Powell planning control powers. housing target and lack of infras- theCrime picnic areaReports and rear exit. à38 land, to oversee the problem area.” Cllr Fort welcomed a joint initia- A three-monthly litter pick on the calling for a temporary suspen- The Conservative group, sup- tructure, such as roads. A recent event in Burberry Lane tive by the Environment Agency mile-long stretch of road through sion of building proposals be- ported by Lib Dem leader Cllr Cllr Powell said: “This was a CrimeA SHED wasReports broken into in 35 saw a caravan burned out while a and the Driver and Vehicle Stan- Leeds village produces an average Tufton Street; alcohol and classic piece of political manoeu- VEHICLES have been driven over torched car remains on a footpath dards Agency to clamp down on 32 black sacks of rubbish. money were taken in a break-in vring. We won the moral victory farmland in Lenham, causing Cllr Fort, who also serves as a at a business premises in parishas this councillor, would not says have teaching pro- damge to crops; an attempted gressed without our interven- break-inMedway was Street reported; tobacco in Detling and ; a children about social responsibility £220 were stolen from a house andtion.” the issue of litter in schools will vehicle was vandalised in Bearsted in Knightrider Street; a wheelie helpCllr take Sams the andissue fellow off the Lenham streets. Rd, Weavering; pumpkins were bin was stolen from an address Shemember, believes Cllr with Tom every Sams, household have stolen from an allotment in receivingnow withdrawn a weekly supportrefuse collection for Lib Lenhamin Melville. Road; tools were YOUR LOCAL PROPERTY EXPERT stolen from Union Street. [email protected] service,Dem leader there Cllr is no Martin excuse Cox, for litterwho beingdepended thrown on fromtheir vehiclessupport orto Comment à46-47 01622 690290 23 Pudding Lane • Maidstone • Kent dumpedform his inadministration the road. last May. Comment 46-47 HomeHome Alarms Alarms supplied supplied andand fittedfitted visitvisit www.amiga.co.ukwww.amiga.co.uk oror call call 0800008000 199622199622 BI FOLD DOORS IN BLACK, GREY OR WHITE - NO PRICE UPLIFT £1099 PER LEAF CALL NOW FOR OFFER THE VERY BEST OFFERS TOP QUALITY PRODUCTS AT AFFORDABLE PRICES! inc. 10 year guarantee windows : doors : conservatories 01622 686732 Composite front doors installed from £999 - CALL NOW! 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Ofsted inspectors concluded that provements made to contain the the New Line Learning Academy garden’s rare and unusual plants, had made “significant improve- some of which were brought back ments” following a two-day in- by early plant-hunters.