The Village Magazine of the Chiddingstones

www.achurchnearyou.com/church/16937/benefice

75 Pence February 2021 USEFUL CONTACT NUMBERS

Churches Associate Priest Bill MacDougall 01892 870442 Licensed Lay Minister Sally Musson 07713 352017 Churchwardens (St Mary’s Bob Golds 01892 870429 Village) Chris Bell 01732 866222 Verger (St Mary’s) Christine Roberts 01892 870437 Churchwardens (St Luke’s Paul Allen 01732 463382 ) Vacancy Pastoral Assistant Carol Benton 01892 870483 Pastoral Help (Causeway) Helen Barnes 01732 838855 Pastoral Help (Hoath) Jane-Ann Golds 01892 870429 Safeguarding Officer Dennis Ward 01732 860505 Bell Ringers Stella Wooldridge 01892 870323 Choir Paul Allen 01732 463382 Parochial Parish Administrator Louise Sanders Ch urch Council [email protected]

Local Chiddingstone Sports Assoc Martin Keeler 01732 700516 Organisations Chiddingstone Football Club Martin Keeler 01732 700516 Chiddingstone Cricket Club Mark Streatfeild 01892 870851 Stonewall Park Cricket Club Andy Batchelder 07903 830142 Causeway Stoolball Club Rosa Gower 01892 870644 Stonewall Park Stoolball Club Pauline Hodge 01892 524783 Chiddingstones Tennis Club Richard Sinclair 07771 912108 Chiddingstone Real Football Katie Ashworth 07730 331800 Chiddingstone W.I. Elaine King 01892 871536 Chiddingstone Causeway W.I Carol Benton 01892 870483 Chiddingstone Over 60’s Elizabeth Fleming 01892 870224 Alice Peterkin 01892 870503 Tuesday Group (pre-school) Sam Day 01892 871570 Edenbridge Voluntary Transport Service 01732 865353 Chiddingstone Castle 01892 870347 CHAPS Kenton Ward 07881 957800 Res. Assoc. Trust Steen Carndorf 01732 700585

Youth Youth Club Chris Pounds 07725 563636 Organisations Scout Group Lorna Baker 01732 750178

School Head teacher Rachel Streatfeild 01892 870339 Nursery School Leader Jill McCoy 01892 871315

Village Hall Chiddingstone Jane Ann Golds 01892 870429 Bookings Chiddingstone Causeway Elaine Ewer 07597 271974 St. Luke’s Parish Room Diane Heasman 01892 870794

Sevenoaks District Council Councillors James Osborne-Jackson 01732 227000 Sue Coleman 07500 061229

Parish Councils Chiddingstone - Chairman Jonathan Roper 07798 734271 - Clerk Louise Kleinschmidt 01892 740753 Leigh - Chairman Joe Kaye 01732 835897 - Clerk Louise Kleinschmidt 01892 740753

Magazine Editor and ‘’For Sale ads’’ Jenny Chettle 01342 850827 [email protected] Commercial advertising Robert Hunt and advertising copy [email protected] A16 A17 A18 BEAUTIFUL ANDALUCIAN VILLA Secluded position. Sleeps 6, 3 beds, 3 baths, private pool. Ideal walkers, golfers, bird watching etc. 10 mins drive to coast of Mojacar beach with it’s café’s, bars and restaurants. For more information visit: www.lavillamargarita.com or contact [email protected]

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FEBRUARY 2021 Forthcoming Events

Tuesday 2nd, 9th and 16th February Join ‘Absolutely Everything’ Quiz Shows with Chris Lloyd see page 11 Saturday 13th February Family Concert by Tonbridge Music Club - postponed Tuesday 16th February Parish Council Meeting by Zoom see page 6 Wednesday 17th February MAGAZINE COPY BY 12 NOON PLEASE see page 6

HOW ABOUT SINGING WITH THE CHORAL SOCIETY ON TUESDAYS ON ZOOM! see page 15

FROM THE RECTORY As I write this letter, we are in the third national lockdown, and ’s Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, has announced that we are within the most serious phase of this pandemic in the UK. Coronavirus has dominated the news, and what we hoped we would experience as a brighter New Year as we left 2020 behind us, is yet to come. Several years ago, when we were visiting Kerala in South India, we stayed at the home of Arundhati Roy’s aunt, in the area where her book, ‘The God of Small Things’, was located. We read more of her writings and listened to her speaking at an online conference. A Christmas card from a friend this year contained the following quote from her recent book in April 2020: “Whatever it is, coronavirus has made the mighty kneel and brought the world to a halt like nothing else could. Our minds are still racing back and forth, longing for a return to “normality”, trying to stitch our future to our past and refusing to acknowledge the rupture. But the rupture exists. And in the midst of this terrible despair, it offers us a chance to rethink the doomsday machine we have built for ourselves. Nothing could be worse than a return to normality. Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. Cont/……

1 We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us. Or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world, and ready to fight for it”. (Arundhati Roy: 2020: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/blogs/130-arundhati-roy- the-pandemic-is-a-portal) It is encouraging to see the new centres for vaccinations opening up across the country, and the anticipation that most, if not all, adults will have been able to receive the vaccination by Autumn 2021. It is great to begin to think about planning holidays, to watch the dawn of Spring as the bulbs push through the earth and the buds on the trees beginning to emerge and to imagine life as we remember it again. But I think it is helpful to remind ourselves that this is our opportunity to ‘imagine our world anew’ and to ‘walk through [the gateway] lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world, and ready to fight for it’. For Christmas, Isobel gave me Jonathan Sacks’ last book, where he asks; ‘Are we destined to live with ever more divisive politics…divided societies, growing inequalities and increasing loneliness, less public regard for truth and evermore determined efforts to ban and demonise the voices with which we disagree? Can we change?’ He believed that we can, by shifting our cultural outlook from ‘I’ to ‘we’. 1 1Morality: Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times 2020:321 We have an opportunity to work to create a better world for people and the planet and ensure that we leave the next generation a place where they can live peacefully, fairly and sustainably - and may God be our helper. God bless, Bill UPDATE FROM THE CHURCHWARDENS There has been a slight delay in the church machinery for approving the enlarged `benefice of Penshurst, and the Chiddingstone Churches’ that will be recruiting a new Rector. We are unable to advertise for the post until this approval comes through but rest assured that lots of work has been going on behind the scenes so that we are able to start as soon as we have the green light. In particular, a new Benefice-wide parish profile has been produced by an all-parish working party of David Lough (Penshurst), Peter Waghorn (Fordcombe) and Paul Allen, Felicity Streatfeild and Bob Golds (Chiddingstones). Following final approval from the Diocese, circulated to PCC and Electoral Roll members at the same time as it appears as an advert on the various church web sites. We will keep you appraised of an agreed programme as soon as we know. Paul Allen and Bob Golds

2 SCHOOL NEWS When we broke up for Christmas, we said goodbye to the children, not realising that we would not be seeing the majority in January. This has been a start to the New Year like no other. Another national lockdown has thrown us many challenges but we have learnt a lot over the last year and have been able to adapt relatively seamlessly to a combination of remote learning and onsite provision for children of critical workers. Our Teachers and TA’s have been working very hard to continue to provide a varied creative curriculum for all. Here are some of the activities that the children have been up to at home and at school: The term for Reception class has started off with our new topic, Winter Wonderland. The children are enjoying a full curriculum focusing on the winter season. We have investigated how ice melts in our warm hands and we have baked snowflake cookies. In the very brief snowfall, some children were able to build snowmen before the snow melted and made a snowman with salt dough. The children have also taken part in spotting the different birds in their gardens. In Year 1 the children have kicked off the term with the topic, Dinosaur Planet, and they have looked at a variety of dinosaurs and their habitat. They made dinosaur eggs with clay, adding glitter and dried peas for texture. They used stencils to create drawings of dinosaurs in their habitats and used natural materials to make a prehistoric landscape. In Year 2, the children have made thankful prayers on leaves to add to our ‘thankfulness tree’ in the classroom - it is a lovely reminder to be thankful during what is a hard time for so many. The children have been so engaged with the online learning and we've had fun doing karate punctuation, measuring the length of objects in our homes as well as finding some snow on the top of a hill! An explosive start to Term 3! Class 3 has been very busy investigating the structure of the earth in preparation for our topic this term, ‘Rocks, Relics and Rumbles’. We are very much looking forward to becoming rock specialists as well as exploring volcanoes, earthquakes and tsunamis. At the same time, we are perfecting our addition and subtraction skills before we start working with money in maths. Cont/…

3 The topic in Year 4 this term is ‘Burps, Bottoms and Bile’, a topic you can imagine the children love! So far, we have been learning about the structure of teeth, different types of teeth and their functions. Using this knowledge, we have then been able to identify different animal skulls. In literacy we have been writing letters to the Tooth Fairy and have also read and written our own winter inspired concrete (shape) poems. Year 5 have blasted off into outer-space this term for their Stargazing topic. They've been researching the planets in our Solar System and finding out why we have night and day. Apart from their scientific work, they've also been inventing their very own planets. So far, we've had talking dogs, people being flattened by excess gravity and aliens with H2O allergies - thankfully, lockdown hasn't blunted their creativity! I am writing to inform you that your son, Marlon, has breached the rules of our Leisure Centre by repeatedly diving dangerously into our pool. As a result of this, he has been given a two-month ban. We are very disappointed by his actions. At Leigh Leisure Land, we do whatever we can to keep our swimmers safe; we take our health and safety guidelines very seriously. We hope that you will talk to your son about the consequences of his actions and that he will have learnt from this incident. We are looking forward to welcoming him back after his ban. Yours sincerely Jack Fudge Leisure Centre Manager We are hoping that by the time the next edition of the magazine is distributed, we are heading towards a more normal provision at school again but, as ever, we will adapt and change in order to keep our community safe. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our fabulous parents for their continued support of the children's remote learning and for their good humour and understanding during these challenging times.

4 CHIDDINGSTONE PARISH COUNCIL 1. Planning: the following applications have been determined by District Council: - SE/20/02989/FUL: Land south of Puckden, Hoath Corner, Chiddingstone Hoath - proposed conversion of outbuilding into separate unit of residential accommodation. Application approved. - SE/20/03055/LBCALT: Lockskinners Farmhouse, Chiddingstone - structural remedial work to timber frame, removal of modern timber first floor and replacement with new timber floor, removal of modern plaster board between rafters, replacement with insulation, fibre board and lime plaster infilled. Ground floor trial pit and removal of modern brick/block wall and replacement with oak frame wall. Application approved. - SE/20/01171/HOUSE: 1 Eden View, The Village, Chiddingstone - demolition of existing outbuildings and erection of detached garage with workshop. Application approved. - SE/20/02841/LDCPR: 1 Ryewell Cottages, Ryewell Hill, Chiddingstone Hoath - Lawful Development Certificate for the erection of a detached outbuilding to comprise a home gym, games room study and shower room within the rear garden. Application refused. - SE/20/03243/HOUSE: 3 The Green, Chiddingstone Hoath - proposed alterations to existing double garage. Application approved. 2. Budget and Precept: the Parish Council has approved the budget for 2021/22 and has unanimously resolved to reduce the precept from £41,500 to £41,325. This will mean that there will be no increase in the Parish Council’s portion of your council tax, which members felt was important after such a difficult year. 3. Parish Council Grants: parish organisations are invited to apply to the Parish Council for a grant. For more information, please contact the Clerk (details below). Deadline for applications: Friday 5th March 2021. 4. The Tree Council’s grant scheme for tree, orchard and hedge planting projects continues for schools and community groups. If you would like to know more see www.treecouncil.org.uk Whilst there is no deadline for applications, all projects must be completed by 31st March 2021. 5. Old parish photographs: the Parish Council is going to create a library of old parish photographs on our website www.chiddingstone.org If you have any that you would like to be included, please contact the Clerk. 6. Charcott: Leigh Parish Council is considering erecting a bus shelter on Camp Hill. This will cost in the region of £6,000 so the Parish Council wants to ensure that a number of parishioners will benefit from this project. If you think you would use the bus shelter, please contact the Clerk. Cont/….

5 7. Police: a reminder on how to contact the Police: Dial 999 in an emergency, if a serious crime is in process or has just been committed, if someone is in immediate danger, if property is in danger or if serious disruption to the public is likely. Dial 101 for all non-emergency enquiries or to report a crime that has occurred, but you are not in an emergency situation. Report online at www.kent.police.uk 8. Potholes: please report highway faults, including potholes and drainage issues, to www.kent.gov.uk/roads-and-travel/report-a-problem or call 03000 419191. 9. Parish Council meetings: the Parish Council continues to meet remotely via Zoom. All meetings are listed on our website, together with agendas and minutes. If you would like to remotely attend a Parish Council meeting, or if you need any help or advice, please contact the Clerk who will send you an invitation to the meeting. The next Parish Council Meeting will be held on Tuesday 16th February at 7.30pm remotely via Zoom. Louise Kleinschmidt, Parish Clerk Salehurst Barn, Oak Lane, , Kent. TN3 9UB. Tel: 01892 740753. Email: [email protected] www.chiddingstone.org

NEXT EDITION All contributions for the March edition of the magazine by 12 noon on WEDNESDAY 17th February. PLEASE PUT THE DATE IN YOUR DIARIES IMMEDIATELY SO THAT I DON'T HAVE TO CHASE PEOPLE! Copy can be left in Chiddingstone Village Shop, posted to me at 6a High Street, , Edenbridge, Kent TN8 7JB or: [email protected]

NURSERY NEWS We had great fun celebrating the Chinese New Year – the Year of the Ox. We turned our home corner into a Chinese restaurant, had noodles at snack time and watched the lion dancers drumming. We then went into the courtyard to discover the different sounds we could make by drumming the Nursery rhythm sticks. We have been enjoying favorite stories and Nursery rhymes. We discovered three bridges in the Castle grounds just like the story of the ‘Three Billy Goats Gruff’; we investigated how many dinosaurs we could fit in the different sized buckets after watching the story of ‘Harry and the Bucketful of Dinosaurs’; we found a cave in the Castle grounds sadly with no ‘Gruffalo’ inside but we still acted out the story from our Nursery story sack. Cont/….. 6 For our ‘Wood’s Wednesday’, we made houses out of straw, sticks and bricks from the story of the ‘Three Little Pigs’. As the weather becomes a little colder, we have been considering what we can do to support our wildlife and have made bird feeders for the birds living in our very special garden and grounds. To link with the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2021 (29th January to 31st January), we will be observing all the different birds that arrive to feed. The children will also be making Valentine cards to take home and talked about who is special to them. Mrs J McCoy, Chiddingstone Nursery Tel: 01892 871315

CHIDDINGSTONE WI Firstly, a Happy New Year to all in the Chidds and especially our WI members. I am sure everyone is glad to see the back of 2020 and look forward to a much better, happier and above all healthier 2021. Our lovely President, Elaine, arranged for every WI member to receive a mini Christmas “box” including an individual bottle of bubbly, a handmade bookmark, card and Christmas tree bauble, mince pie and plenty of good wishes. We then had a Christmas Zoom where members wore plenty of festive items, and one even wore the handmade bauble as an earring …. very fetching! Sadly, no Christmas meal this time of course, but we were able to raise a glass with the mini bottle of bubbly. We met again on Zoom for our January meeting and as well as the social chat, enjoyed a talk about the lifestyle of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, and are planning to have further talks and social meetings until such time as we are able to meet up again in person. If you would like to join us, you would be very welcome. Zoom allows for past members to “come” to the meetings as well as friends of the WI so all are welcome. Just drop an email to either our Secretary: Carol Bowern at [email protected] / our Treasurer who arranges the Zooms for us: Jacqui Wilcox at [email protected] or myself: Janie Ramsay at [email protected] Our next “meeting” will be on Tuesday 2nd February at 7.30pm, so if you aren’t doing anything – why not join in. What have you got to lose?

7 THE TULIP TREE The Tea Room is currently open for takeaways, Thursday to Sunday, with takeaway teas and coffees available in the shop, Monday to Wednesday. Please keep an eye on our website and social media as we anticipate opening 7 days a week again (takeaway only) from mid February. The shop remains open 7 days a week, and we continue to stock a wide range of food and fresh produce. Don’t forget, if you are wanting some of your favourite fruits and vegetables such as chicory, Jerusalem artichokes or dragon fruit etc, just call us a day or two in advance and we will happily order it in for you. Please take a look at our website if you haven’t already. You can see a lot of our range online which you can order and arrange collection or we can send out directly to you or a loved one with a personalised note. We have a wide range of cards and gifts on there as well as much more! We have newly launched a ‘Cake Away’ service where you can pre order a 6” cake (approximately 6-8 portions) for just £10, collection from Thursday 1pm through to Monday (whilst we are on reduced opening times). We will have a selection on the counter of the Tea room and possibly in the shop, which you can buy on the day, but if you want to guarantee a cake is available then just email us on [email protected] We will initially offer Victoria sponge, coffee and walnut (or just coffee) and lemon and poppy seed. If you have a particular request, such as gluten free, chocolate or carrot etc, let us know and we will always try to accommodate. Why not do something special for Valentine’s Day? Order one of our fabulous Valentine’s afternoon Teas for two which includes a selection of sandwiches, mini sausage rolls, freshly baked plain and fruit scones with clotted cream and Kent strawberry jam, a range of sweet treats and Prosecco instead of Tea. More details can be found on our website www.TheTulipTree.biz Booking of at least 24 hours is essential as we prepare everything freshly for you. If you want to contact the Tea room, please do so Thursday to Sunday Tel: 01892 871504 or the shop Tel: 01892 870326, 7 days a week. Alternatively, please email us at: [email protected] Nicoletta and team Shop 01892 870326 Tea Room 01892 871504 [email protected] www.thetuliptree.biz T: @TheTulipTreeTea I:@thetuliptreetea F:facebook.com/thetuliptreetea

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FEBRUARY Our grounds are open Enjoy our grounds for some fresh air surrounded by history, views of the Kentish countryside, and enchanting woodland. We respectfully request that COVID-19 government guidelines are followed in our grounds at all times.

What’s on in 2021? Events planned include open-air music, theatre and traditional Japanese arts. Sadly, the Chiddingstone Castle Literary Festival 2021 will not take place, but we hope to arrange alternatives to engage our literary fans. We open the Castle in April to showcase the intriguing collections and history, and serve refreshments, teas, and light lunches in the Tea Room courtyard for all. See updates on Facebook and Instagram. We would love to hear from you. www.facebook.com/ChiddingstoneCastle. https://www.instagram.com/chidd_castle/

Looking forward to Spring Look forward to better days and you can purchase gift vouchers for yourself, your friends and family. Try a traditional Afternoon Tea, explore the castle's collections and the intriguing life of Denys Eyre Bower, and relax by the lake with a day of fishing. www.chiddingstonecastle.org.uk/gift-vouchers/

Things to discover online Whilst we are closed, you can read more about the artworks and artefacts displayed at the Castle on our website ‘Object of the Month’ blog. From Japanese iron creatures, to Ancient Egyptian statues of the gods. Explore the collections from home. Watch out next month for interactive family fun as ‘Wheels of Time’ gets ready to unveil e-badges to earn online https://www.facebook.com/WheelsOfTime/

Join our friendly team of volunteers Whether you are an expert, or you wish to learn and gain experience, please volunteer with us. We need help with gardening, the grounds and woodland, the collections, the visitor experience, and more. We would love to hear from you. Email us to arrange an informal chat at: [email protected] Support the Castle Chiddingstone Castle and the collections of Denys Eyre Bower are cared for by a charitable trust. All donations help towards the maintenance of the historic buildings, collections, grounds and our education and events programme. We need your support more than ever to continue our work to share the centuries of history and stories preserved within the Castle's walls and grounds. Visit the ‘Support Us’ page on our website to donate. https://events.liveit.io/chiddingstone-castle/donate-to-chiddingstone- castle/ ______Local history | Japanese, Egyptian, Buddhist and Jacobite collections | Tudor origins Victorian rooms | 35 acres of woodland, lawns and fishing lake | Take away Tea Room

Year-round availability for weddings, parties, corporate events, groups and school visits. We follow COVID-19 government guidelines to respect visitor and staff well-being. www.chiddingstonecastle.org.uk Chiddingstone, Kent TN8 7AD - 01892 870347 - [email protected]

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Don’t miss February’s Penshurst Farmers’ Market for the very best local seasonal food and drink around Saturday 6th February 9.30am – 12pm Penshurst Place Visitor Car Park The days are still short but spring really is around the corner so get out and make the most of the light with a visit to our February market. With over 20 regular stalls back after a New Year break, there’s lots to try and buy. If it’s comfort eating you’re after, we’ve got plenty of choice from home-made cakes and pies to cuts of grass-fed beef and lamb or wild venison perfect for slow cooking. The cold seas around the south coast means this is the best time to buy locally-caught fish and seafood now at their peak. Everything is grown, picked or made locally for the market by our talented, hardworking stallholders. Don’t forget to bring your kitchen knives and garden tools to be sharpened by our Knife Ninja ready for the new season in the garden; buy new season’s flowering spring bulbs and shrubs from Low Wood Nursery to get into the ground now. To ensure we keep everyone safe during lockdown, our Covid - ready one way system will be in place and we ask you to come prepared to shop alone and queue to enter. We encourage you to wear a mask if appropriate. Parking is plentiful, free and close by. Facebook PenshurstFarmersMarket Follow us on Twitter@PenshurstFmMrkt www.kfma.org.uk/Penshurst

BLACKHAM VILLAGE MARKET Suspended until further notice

Hildenborough Farmers’ Market is held every Tuesday 9am - 11am at St John’s Church Centre, . 402 bus stops outside. Contact: Janet Richardson, Manager Tel: 01732 838903. www.hildenboroughfarmersmarket.co.uk Find us on Facebook and Twitter too. 10

BRITANNICA AND ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING QUIZ SHOWS! Beginning on Tuesday 2nd February at 5pm, I will be running the first of THREE new quiz shows based around my world history book Absolutely Everything! Click on the links below to register:

• Tuesday 2nd February at 5pm will be Absolutely Everything! – Part 1 Natural History www.whatonearthbooks.com/chrisquiz1

• Tuesday 9th February at 5pm will be Absolutely Everything! – Part 2 Ancient History www.whatonearthbooks.com/chrisquiz2 • Tuesday 16th February at 5pm will be Absolutely Everything! – Part 3 Modern History www.whatonearthbooks.com/chrisquiz3 Please spread the word as far and as wide as you can - to teachers, schools, home educators – everyone of all ages welcome! If you would like to take advantage of our book offers then: • The £5 discount off the Britannica All New Children’s Encyclopedia is here: www.whatonearthbooks.com/offer1 • The £12 off a bundle of the Britannica All New Children’s Encyclopedia and Absolutely Everything! is here: www.whatonearthbooks.com.offer2 Just email me if you’d like any copies signed: [email protected] Cont/… 11 Finally, if all this quizzing has left you hungry for more learning and discovery, please do check out GoCuriosity@Home a wonderful new home-learning offering from my friends at GoCuriosity. Check out this link for a trial of their 3,000 year timeline packed full of fun and educational challenges along the way! https://www.gocuriosity.com/at-home Meanwhile, stay safe, keep smiling and all the best! Chris Lloyd

THE CAUSEWAY HALL Following Government guidelines, the hall will be closed until lockdown restrictions are lifted. We hope to be up and running offering a wide range of classes and available to hire for events, parties and weddings as soon as we are able to. To keep up to date with when we can open and what is going on at the hall please take a look at our Facebook page, The Causeway Hall or website www.causewayhall.co.uk SUE LARKEN Health and Wellbeing Coordinator I hope you are all keeping safe and well. For those of you wanting to keep up your strength, mobility and balance, Sue has made 5 videos. Just go to our website and click on the links: www.ageukseveneoaksandtonbridge.org.uk Anybody just wanting a quick 10 minutes on balance, just click on: https://youtu.be/dNaBTYtSr3A!~OMSelectionMarkerStart~!!~OMSelectionMarkerEnd~! Sue is now teaching seated classes of mobility, strength and balance on line which are free every Tuesday 10.30am - 11:30am. For more information or to join in, email: [email protected] Age UK are still here working to help anyone, so please do not hesitate to make that call - Office Tel: 01732 454108 or Sue: 07867 648667. Stay safe everybody! A MESSAGE FROM CHLOE PHILLIPS I just wanted to thank all of you who have prayed, loved and supported me through my recent relapse, from which I am now fully recovered. Now all we need to return to normality is for the vaccine to work. Chloe

12 SUE’S COLUMN Although Christmas and New Year are now well and truly gone, they certainly left their mark. Everyone will have seen the rising Covid infection, hospitalisation and death figures which seem to have peaked a few weeks after the Festive season but hopefully fewer of you will have seen the mountains of waste produced. Everyone, me included, must have been having a good clear out, washed down with copious alcohol judging by the bottle count! With 20% of SDC refuse staff in isolation, facing a 300% increase in waste over the same period in 2019, people had to be redeployed from other departments to get things under control. I know there were some missed collections and if you were affected, I apologise but I’m happy to report that things are now all back to normal. Otherwise SDC is holding up well. Our Covid related deficit is likely to be £1m but government funding should cover that without us having to use reserves. Less happily, the Council Tax base next year will be down 5.6% so lots of effort is going into attracting new businesses to the district. As I write, ’s Covid case statistics are falling quite quickly, the fastest of anywhere in Kent. Nonetheless there are still 297 cases in Maidstone and Pembury hospitals, down from a peak of 350 in early January, which is much worse than the first wave. In our villages we remain, mercifully, almost completely unaffected and during this lockdown I have received far fewer support requests coming to my volunteer network – people seem to have adjusted to the ‘new normal’. I would still encourage everyone to use the testing facilities available locally – Road test site if you have symptoms but if not, Bat and Ball Community Centre is now open for asymptomatic tests which are just as important (I have used this and it’s very straightforward to book yourself in online). Since lockdown our roads seem less busy but I’ve noticed people seem lax on social distancing when food shopping or exercising and, like everyone else in public office, I urge everyone to observe the 2m guidance. Likewise, I urge anyone who is called for a vaccine to take the opportunity; I’m told that even if you are called to a mass vaccination centre, if you cannot travel there you will not miss out on a vaccine at your GP surgery (although you might have to wait longer). For anyone feeling anxious about the lockdown, Anxiety UK offer a helpline on 0344 477 5774 and older residents can use Age UK’s Silverline service on 0800 470 8090, but the vaccine really does give ‘reason to be cheerful’! Sue Coleman District Councillor for Penshurst, Fordcombe and Chiddingstone

13 A NOTE FROM YOUR MP Holly at Christmas is a reminder that spring is coming. The evergreen leaves are winter’s promise of new life and a reminder that better times are ahead. The restrictions we’re now living through make winter tougher for all of us, but the vaccine now beginning to be shared to so many is a hope of spring to come. I hate the restrictions we’re now under. Families across our country are separated and suffering from the stress of enclosure, loss of work and education and fear for the future. But the situation we have seen in our county is worrying. Hospitals and clinics are seeing the incidence of infection rise to levels that put healthcare for everyone at risk. As a community, and as a country, we needed to act. For many of us the uncertainty has been adding to the stress so I welcome the assurances that we’ve got that although the government has decided the review to this decision will come in mid-February, we already know that the support from the Treasury will continue into April. Along with the new, Oxford- developed AstraZeneca vaccine now being rolled out, we do at least have some hope on the horizon and can see the path to the other side. A target of 2 million doses per week will get us there. I’ve spoken to our doctors and have been assured that they’re on top of this programme and will deliver for all of us. Kent County Council have also been hard at work. Our County Councillor Peter Lake has worked with the borough and the Government to bring non- symptomatic testing for all of us in Kent. Please get tested and isolate if you need to. We can help keep each other safe. If you can, please go further and help. You can volunteer to support the NHS at this time of emergency by going here: https://nhsvolunteerresponders.org.uk/i-want-to-volunteer/volunteer-roles In Kent, we’re among the first in the world to get the vaccine and that’s fantastic, but we need to do more than just share protection, we need to share hope. The restrictions will end, and we will come back together but, in the meantime, let’s remember what makes our villages and parishes - it’s not the buildings but the people. We can look out for each other, help each other and protect each other. I will do my best to help everyone and I know many others will too. [email protected] Conor Dobbs Office of Tom Tugendhat, Member of Parliament for Tonbridge and Malling 130 Vale Road Tonbridge, Kent TN9 1SP Tel: 01732 441563/07795 192042 14 PENSHURST CHORAL SOCIETY CONTINUES TO LIFT THE SPIRITS VIRTUALLY Throughout the dark months of autumn and winter, Tuesday evenings have been special for members of Penshurst Choral Society. At 8pm we wait in anticipation in studies, kitchens or spare rooms for our Zoom app to leap into life for our weekly rehearsal with Musical Director, Joe Tobin. We have never met Joe in the flesh – he conducts us from his bedroom in after taking on the choir during the pandemic, but each week he leads us in a few warmups, some classics and a lot of laughter to keep us singing together. About an hour is enough on screen, but afterwards Joe joins us when we are “sent” randomly to virtual “breakout rooms” to socialise. This has been a new way of making music for us all. Many of us felt technically challenged, but most members have risen to it, and have “met” members of the community that they hadn’t known before. If you are free on Tuesday evenings and would like to sing with us, take a look at https://penshurstchoralsociety.co.uk - find us on Facebook or call Mary Symes Tel: 07776 188194 to find out more. There’s no need to live in the Penshurst area – the wonders of the Worldwide Web enable us to sing with friends near and far! No auditions, lots of learning aids and no-one will hear you sing for the moment, except perhaps the cat…. Come along!

15 HISTORY - TITHE MAP OF CHIDDINGSTONE Some years ago, a large number of local historical records were archived in Chiddingstone Castle following completion of John Donald`s research into the history of Larkins Farm. Amongst those records were about 50 copies of the large 1840 tithe map of Chiddingstone, covering the full length of our extensive parish and parts of Leigh and Penshurst. The detailed map which is about 30” wide and 40” high, shows the names of all the farms and every single field is named, numbered and indexed. A copy is framed and hung in the Village Hall though this is only open to the Primary School at the moment. John Donald has very kindly donated all of his records to the village which are indexed and archived at the Castle, but he has also agreed that the tithe maps may be sold, at £20 each, with the proceeds going to the Chiddingstone Castle Trust. If anyone would like a copy of the tithe map, please could you email or ring me ([email protected] or 01892 870429) and I will arrange for collection at the village shop. Local research and records For anyone wishing to research the local history of their families or old houses in Chiddingstone, there are numerous sources now available, including:- On-line records • Streatfeild manuscripts • National archives • Various family histories • Various legal records (Quarter sessions, assizes, etc) • Numerous family history web sites Other sources • Kent archives at Maidstone • Sevenoaks, Tonbridge and other libraries • Chiddingstone history book – available in village shop • Chiddingstone Castle archives – including microfiche tapes of church records Lionel Cole information Additionally, there is a great deal of information from the historian, Lionel Cole, covering Hever and Edenbridge, and also the following records relating to Chiddingstone:- • Extracts from the Maidstone Journal • An (alphabetical) index to the people of Chiddingstone from 1820-1851 – about 450 pages • Judicial documents relating to Chiddingstone Cont/… 16 All of the above is available at www.theweald.org under the relevant village heading and further down the Chiddingstone page under ‘books and other documents’. The good news for us is that Lionel Cole will, in due course, be extending his research and documentation to cover Chiddingstone in the same detail as Hever and Edenbridge and this will be made available on-line in the same way. Watch this space! Bob Golds

FALCONHURST Farm Shop – Deli – Coffee Fine Food – Local Produce – Fruit and Veg Fresh Artisan Bread – Cheese Counter Foodie Gifts – Tea and Coffee – Beer, Wine and Spirits Fresh Fish every Friday Open Monday – Friday 10am – 5pm, Saturday 10am – 3pm Cowden Pound Road, , Edenbridge TN8 5NR Tel: 01342 850172 email: [email protected] Find us on Google, Facebook and Instagram

WELCOME We belatedly welcome Phoebe and Guy Delmage and their son, Sebastian to Fissenden, Hampkins Hill, Chiddingstone. We also welcome Guy and Zan Johnson Sabine to Tillmans, Chiddingstone Hoath. We wish them all every happiness in their new homes and our community.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY Friday 5th March Deadline for applications for Parish Council Grants see page 6 Wednesday 31st March Completion date for projects under the Tree Council’s Grant Scheme see page 6 Saturday 3rd to Sunday 4th July Festival of Endurance at Hever Castle Saturday 25th to Sunday 26th September Hever Castle Triathlon 17 If any organisation has any further dates to add to this diary, please contact the editor. Hopefully, by publishing and keeping an ongoing list of planned events, we can avoid a clash of interests!

I DO HOPE THAT BEFORE LONG, WE WILL BE ABLE TO START PLANNING EVENTS AGAIN!

CAUSEWAY STORES & POST OFFICE Jodie and Vickie 01892 871527 [email protected]

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A14 A15