Man arrested after 'racist
brawl' in Eynsford, Dartford
(News Shopper, 22.6.2020) 19 year old man from New Ash Green arrested following altercation at Riverside, Eynsford.
Parish Council Meeting 8.6.20
Parish Council: Councillors
All 12 councillors were present, having received the resignation of Mrs Ewing. Arrangements were made to advertise the vacancy. There were no declarations of interest. Also present were Cllr Brazier (KCC) and 1 member of the public.Amenities: Cricket
NAG and Hartley CC say no matched likely until July. Council agreed to charge them £1,205 for the season pro rated if this is cut short due to Covid. Club told it will increase again in 2021.Amenities: Allotments
Following complaints by a neighbour that council's fence is damaging their own, council agreed to pay Mr Munday £335 to replace it with 4ft chestnut paling face and £185 to cut back two large bushes encroaching. The committee will look at replacing the whole fence at the next meeting. They allowed one holder permission to grow a bay tree in a pot so long as it no more than 5 feet high. They had a lengthy discussion about another request to retain poly tunnels on their plot, told they can keep the frames to the end of the growing season but not the plastic cover. Tenancy agreement to be reviewed later.Amenities: Manor Field Pavilion
(1) Redecoration is proceeding. (2) Legionella. They have suspended legionella testing but will do a full test before reopening, which is satisfactory for the insurers. (3) Calor Gas have told them the pipework needs replacing with modern polyethylene piping. They are seeking advice from Caches. (4) They accepted quote from L Vesey of £30 to carry out annual fire risk assessment and KCC Inspection Services's quote of £55 + £5 per appliance to maintain fire extinguishers. (5) Charges - they agreed not to change 2018 scale of chargesAmenities: Trees
Tree surgeon recommends removeal of Ash Trees with die back at Billings Hill Shaw. Disagreement between PC and KCC as to whose land it is on.Amenities: Dog bins
Council rejected request for dog bins in Gorse Way, Gorsewood Road, Church Road, Ash Road, and St John's Lane because each bin would cost £500 plus emptying costs, and Sevenoaks Council will not empty dog waste only bins because they can't take them to KCC's tip.Amenities: Playgrounds
Current inspector is no longer offering annual playground inspections, so they considered quotes for the service. Cheapest one rejected because they were not on Register of Play Inspectors website. They selected one of the others provided they confirm this includes a detailed report with each inspection.Finance: Donations
Council rejected request from New Ash Green Horticultural Association for grant of £750 for improved fencing at their plot behind Black Lion. One of the reasons was how much the council is looking at spending at their own site.Finance: Payments
Payments of £14,149 for June were agreedSchools:
Cllr Brazier said 93% of pupils had received their first choice of school, and only 2% had not got one of their first three choicesPlanning: District Plan
Sevenoaks Council to seek judicial review of planning inspectorate's rejection of the draft plan.Crime: Antisocial Behaviour
Cllr Mrs Cole reported increase in anti-social behaviour in the districtMPs Laura Trott, Tom Tugendhat and Gareth Johnson urge Robert Jenrick to 'call in' Sevenoaks District Council's Local Plan
Local MPs want government to overrule planning inspector who rejected the draft local plan for Sevenoaks. The council had not met the government target and the inspector was concerned the council had not adequately demonstrated the missing houses would be built in neighbouring councils. One comment accused the council of "departing from reality" because they claimed the first draft did meet the target, so officers know it can be done. They also thought that the council had exaggerated the proposed housing densities, so even the low number would not get built.
Covid Update - Sharp rise in Unemployment in Hartley
Numbers of claimants in the Hartley and Hodsoll Street Council ward has risen from 25 in February to 130 in May. The numbers for each area of Hartley for the last 12 months is contained in the table below. The increase in unemployment has been especially high in the Wellfield area.
| Date | East Hartley | South Hartley & Hodsoll St/ | West & North Hartley | Wellfield Estate | Total |
| June 2019 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 30 |
| July 2019 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 35 |
| August 2019 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 30 |
| September 2019 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 35 |
| October 2019 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 35 |
| November 2019 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 25 |
| December 2019 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 20 | 35 |
| January 2020 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 25 | 45 |
| February 2020 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 25 |
| March 2020 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 30 |
| April 2020 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 45 | 75 |
| May 2020 | 25 | 20 | 10 | 75 | 130 |
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Russell Court Nursing Home in Longfield celebrates two 101st birthdays
Picture feature on two ladies who celebrated their 101st birthdays within days of each other. Because of Covid restrictions family had to celebrate with them by video link. Both were married during the war, one recalls having to spend her wedding night in a bomb shelter in the east end of London.
Photographers taking 'doorstep portraits' capture candid picture of life in lockdown from Kent's towns and villages
Picture Feature on Estelle Thompson Photography who has been taking pictures of Covid Lockdown life in Fawkham to raise money for the NHS, so far £500. One picture shown is of the new rector of Fawkham and Hartley, Adele Barker.
Parish Council Meeting 11 May 2020
Parish Council: Councillors
11 councillors were present for the annual meeting. Apologies were received from Cllrs Alford and Mrs Ewing. Also present was Cllr Brazier (KCC) and 1 member of the public. There were no declarations of interest. Cllrs Mrs Oxtoby and Abraham were reelected as chairman and vice chairman accordingly. Committee membership remained unchanged.Parish Council: Policies
The meeting reviewed and approved various policies without amendment.Parish Council: Covid-19
Council agreed to spend £112 on a new computer screen and to donate £1,000 to Sevenoaks Council's fundraising effort for local charities (Age UK Sevenoaks & Tonbridge, Domestic Abuse Volunteer Support Services, Friends for Families (Sevenoaks) and West Kind Mind). Overall Sevenoaks Council volunteer scheme is helping 4,700 residents in tier 1 category, 35 Hartley volunteers helping 69 households requiring weekly assistance, local shops are willing helpers. Cllr Brazier said KCC had taken over procurement of Protective Equipment but due to substantial costs will now have to charge care homes for delivery. He also mentioned Pepper Hill recycling centre is due to reopen soon.Finance: Internal audit
The internal auditor said they had more than £85,000 in the bank so were not completely covered by the financial compensation scheme. Council decided to open business account with Nationwide. He also noted website needs to be checked for accessibility compliance, but seemed OK.Finance: Insurance
Council accepted quote of £1,772 from Pen Underwriting Limited.Finance: Annual Report
The accounts for 2019/20 were completed. At the beginning of the year the council had £271,677 balance, added to this was £133,697 from council tax and £38,378 from other income (nearly £13,000 of which came from the Community Infrastructure levy). Expenditure exceeded income but they still ended the year with a balance of £243,972. Total cash and short term investments was £249,091.Finance: Payments
Payments for May of £16,687 were agreedRoads: Cherry Trees
Landlords have awarded contract to repair paving slabs but this has been delayed by Covid.Two men charged with conspiring to burgle newsagents in Longfield, Chatham and Rochester
KM Medway Edition 6.5.2020
One of alleged cases relates to shop in Station Road, Longfield where a quantity of cigarettes was taken on 13 April.
1 June 2020 - MPs Laura Trott, Tom Tugendhat and Gareth Johnson urge Robert Jenrick to 'call in' Sevenoaks District Council's Local Plan
Local MPs want government to overrule planning inspector who rejected the draft local plan for Sevenoaks. The council had not met the government target and the inspector was concerned the council had not adequately demonstrated the missing houses would be built in neighbouring councils. One comment accused the council of "departing from reality" because they claimed the first draft did meet the target, so officers know it can be done. They also thought that the council had exaggerated the proposed housing densities, so even the low number would not get built.
Sevenoaks Messenger