Ditton Gazette - Summer 2008

It’s new, it’s exciting, and it’s all for our youngsters

photograph of the iPlay

DITTON is to receive an iPlay unit from Tonbridge and Malling Play Partnership’s grant from The Big Lottery, in addition to the new youth shelter and games wall.

The high-tec iPlay is an innovating, stimulating, healthy and intelligent play system which combines interactive electronics with conventional playground equipment. It is fun, energetic and addictive.

It has multi-player options and can be played by one person or up to six people and is suitable for people of all ages and abilities.

iPlay is solar powered and individual scores can be uploaded on to the internet at www.iplayweb.com
It will be the first iPlay unit in Kent and is sure to generate a lot of interest and be well used.

If you want to learn more about the exciting iPlay, call into the parish office any weekday between 9am and 4pm where we will be happy to see you.

LET me introduce myself. My name is Paul Crispe and I am the new Community Warden for Ditton.

I am based in the Community Centre. My phone number is 07813 712081 and if, for some reason, I do not answer your call please leave a message and contact number and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

So far I have enjoyed my time in Ditton and I am looking forward to working in the community.

Currently we have a few issues within the area – a mini moto that is being rid-den in the field and in the quarry.

I have had a number of residents who have complained about parking on the footpath. Can I please ask that when you are parking think of those who have children in a buggy or someone who is in a disabled buggy as there have been cases when they have had to go out into the road, which has made it dangerous for them.

Could I also remind those of you who take your dogs out to please clean up when your dog has been to the toilet. Most of you are very good at doing this but there are a few who do not clean up.

If you see something that is going on, please do not wait for me to come in the next day. Ring the Police and report it.

GARY "Wolfie" Smith was a loveable rogue who was born in Ditton in 1964 and gained many friend in his lifetime.

He played for various football clubs within Ditton which included Ditton Minors and Majors, Ditton Village and Ditton W.M.C before settling down in Snodland and going on to play and manage Townsend Hooks FC.

In 2005, at the age of 44, he died following a short illness. His funeral proved how much he was loved as over 400 people attended to pay last their respects.

Since his death Martin Goodright and Gary Casey have organised a charity football match between friends/players from Townsend Hooks and the Ditton teams Wolfie played for, with all proceeds going to Demelza House.

This year’s game will be on August Bank Holiday and details of times and venue can be obtained from Gary Casey on 07961 988120. All are welcome.

It is also hoped that a female match will take place if enough players can be found.

Projects
I AM PLEASED to report that during 2007, CCTV was purchased and installed around the Community Centre in an endeavour to stop vandalism, anti-social behaviour and intimidation of hirers.

This system is working well and has captured a few crimes and the taped evidence has been used by the police.

We have also purchased a mobile CCTV unit that can be deployed around the parish as needed to monitor specific problem areas, so please let us know if there is a particular problem area.

Unfortunately, we were unsuccessful with our bids for grant aid to rebuild the Cedar Room, but thanks must go staff, councillors and residents, including youths, who worked so hard and put in so much time and effort into the project.

I am, however, happy to report that all is not yet lost as we are now looking into the possibility of refurbishing the existing Cedar Room, which won’t be as costly but will still give the additional accommodation required. Grant aid will still be sought for this project.

Information leaflets for new residents have been compiled during the year and include lots of useful information and contact numbers. If you know of any newcomers to the village please let us know so that they can be welcomed and provided with the information leaflet.

Public Meetings
TWO PUBLIC meetings were held during the year with residents and partner authorities to deal with specific issues:

1 To deal with problems of anti-social behaviour in Pear Tree Avenue.
2 To discuss with Shepherd and Neame Ltd the problems and concerns of residents regarding the opening of the new public house in New Road, The Kentish Quarryman.

Both meetings proved to be very useful and measures taken in and around Pear Tree Avenue have eased the problems there.

With regard to the new public house, the council realises it is not an ideal situation to have a public house in the middle of residential properties, but it does appreciate that an established use as a licensed premises already exists there (it was formerly Ditton Working Mens’ Club), therefore there was little the council could do to prevent it opening, except object to the opening hours applied for and to ensure security measures were imposed.

During the meeting an undertaking was given by the brewers that they would only apply for an extension of opening hours until 11.30pm and not the 12.30am (Sunday to Thursday) and 1.30am (Friday and Saturday) as originally requested. They did say, however, that they would review this in the future.

They also gave an undertaking not to sell any ‘off sales’ alcohol to any persons under 21 years of age.

We thank all our partner authorities for their support and participation in these meetings and especially the Police who played a major part and agreed to chair both meetings.

Residents are reminded that all meetings of the parish council are open to the public and details of meetings can be found on the website www.dittonparishcouncil.gov.uk or obtained from the parish office.

Big Lottery Grant
DURING 2007 the parish council submitted a Big Lottery Fund grant application to the Borough Council’s Play Partnership for consideration for inclusion in their combined bid for funding for play provision in the borough.

I am pleased to report that Ditton’s application was one of four successful bids to be included. During January this year the Borough Council was advised that the Play Partnership’s application had been successful and they were awarded £222,983. The grant for Ditton is for a Youth Shelter and Games wall.

Ditton and Aylesford, whose application was also successful, will be the first two projects undertaken. A youth committee has been set up to enable the parish council to establish the style of equipment the youths would prefer, to ensure it is well used and appreciated by them. Staff, councillors and borough council officers are also a part of this committee. It is anticipated that the new equipment will be installed in the next few months.

We congratulate the Borough Council’s Play Partnership on their success in obtaining a substantial grant, which we know from experience is no easy task.

Finances
THE PARISH council’s investment suffered minimally last year due to the downturn in the financial market, however, it is still producing a fair return of interest and yield. By careful budgeting we have managed to keep any increase in the parish part of the council tax to just 0.1 per cent for 2008/2009. This is a major achievement when one sees the increases that have been applied by other authorities.

TACKLING climate change will be one of the most important things this generation does and everyone needs to get involved. Every day, more and more people are taking action to reduce their carbon footprint and tackle environmental problems. YOU CAN HELP TOO.

Save Energy and Water.
Saving energy and water at home will probably be your biggest contribution to climate change, so this is a good place to look for savings. There are several ways you can do this AND save money:

Turn down your thermostat by one degree and you will reduce carbon emission and cut your fuel bills.

Look for the Energy Saving Recommended label or European energy label when buying products that use energy. Choose a more efficient model. Most items are clearly marked for efficiency now, or choose one which has a label rating of ‘A’ or higher.

Improve your insulation. More than half the heat lost in your home escapes through the walls and roof. Loft and cavity wall insulation can save you money on your heating bills.

Be water efficient. Fix dripping taps, collect rainwater in butts for watering your garden, fit a ‘hippo’ in your toilet cistern. If you are thinking of buying new equipment choose low flush volume toilets, water efficient shower heads and aerating heads on taps.

By implementing these efficiency measure you will not only be better off financially you will also be helping to save our planet.

Choose an efficient car and try to reduce your car journeys. Why try not car sharing for some journeys?

Consider the alternatives to flying or by taking longer breaks instead of several short ones.

Reduce, reuse and recycle waste. Nearly two thirds of all household waste can be recycled.

Take a bag when you go shopping instead of using the supermarket’s plastic bags.

Buy recycled products such as paper, toilet rolls, kitchen rolls which are now widely available.

Let’s all do our bit for the sake of the environment and save our planet for future generations.

The Parish Council would like to feature items of news and reports from local clubs and organisations in future editions of the Gazette so everyone in Ditton knows all about your club/organisation. You can tell us about your successes, events, membership details etc. Why not nominate a representative to liaise with the Editor. Contact the parish office on 01732 844749 for further details.

THERE are more than 50 recycling sites around Tonbridge and Malling for the collection and recycling of newspaper and magazines, cardboard, glass bottles and jars, cans, textiles and shoes and CDs, books and we have recently introduced plastic bottle recycling at eight sites.

Plastic bottles
Banks for the recycling of plastic bottles can be found at; Burham village hall, Burham; Ightham village hall, Ightham; Sainsbury's, Quarry Wood, Aylesford; Rocfort Road car park, Snodland; High Street car park, West Malling; Tesco's car park, Leybourne Way, Larkfield; ASDA car park, Kings Hill; Stangate Quarry entrance, Quarry Hill Road, Borough Green; Tonbridge Farm Sports Ground car park, Darenth Avenue, Tonbridge; The Angel Centre car park, Tonbridge.

All plastic bottles marked with a 1, 2 or 3 recycling symbol can be placed in the recycling banks. This includes plastic bottles that contained fizzy drinks, mineral water, squashes, cooking oils, milk (not cartons), fruit juice, washing up liquids, detergents, fabric conditioners, bleach, cleaning fluids, shampoo, bubble bath, shower gel and conditioner. Residents are asked to remove lids from bottles before squashing them. Do not to put yogurt pots, food trays, tetra packs, plastic bags or bottles that contained motor oil, paint, anti-freeze or pesticides in the banks as these are NOT suitable for recycling.

Glass
Glass bottles and jars should be separated, by colour into the green, clear and brown glass banks. Blue or mixed coloured bottles should be placed in the green bottle banks.

Glass placed in these banks is collected by Veolia Environmental Services in one of two specialist vehicles.

Cans
Food and drink cans can be recycled at the yellow can banks at a number of recycling sites. Please ensure cans are rinsed out to prevent pests being attracted to the smell.

Newspapers and magazines
Newspapers, magazines, holiday brochures, catalogues, junk mail, white directories, white office/copy paper can all be collected in the blue paper banks.

Cardboard
Nearly all types of cardboard can be recycled at the brown cardboard recycling banks. This includes brown corrugated cardboard, flat grey cardboard, typically used in cereal and shoe boxes and toilet roll tubes and shiny card-board used around ready meals. Christmas and birthday cards can also be recycled or composted.

Textiles
Virtually every kind of textile, from T-shirts to saris can be collected in the textile banks. The material will then be sent for recycling or if it is of a suitable quality for re-use.

We are always keen to expand the number of sites and are happy to investigate suggestions for potential locations. If you would like to discuss our recycling sites, please contact the Waste Services Team, telephone 01732 876147, email waste.services@tmbc.gov.uk or SMS text message to 07781 482959.

FOLLOWING many months of planning and organising our second annual five-a-side football tournament took place at Ditton Community Centre over the early May Bank Holiday weekend, together with the Community Sports Day.

Saturday, May 3, saw over 40 teams of boys and girls competing at Under 12s, 13s and 14s with the winners of each age group being spread among the different teams, with these being:

Under 12s: Snodland Nomads; Under 13s: Larkfield Boys; Under 14s: Holtwood Rangers; Under 14 girls: Ridgewaye, (the final saw Ridgewaye ‘A’ face Ridgewaye ‘B’ who had come from the Tunbridge Wells area).
Bank holiday Monday, was just as successful, with around the same number of boys’ teams competing at Under 8s, 9s, 10s and 11s. Holtwood Rangers and Vinters Park spread the honours evenly between them.

However, Ditton Minors U10s should be congratulated as they were the most successful of all of our teams and made it to the final. They put on a great display, had a lot of support and were unfortunate not to come away with the winner’s trophy.

The successful teams were: Under 8s: Holtwood Rangers; Under 9s:Vinters Park; Under 10s: Vinters Park; Under 11s – Holtwood Rangers

The Community Sports Day took place on Sunday, May 4, and this saw the morning kick off with a mini-tournament for boys and girls between Larkfield, Maidstone Utd and Ditton Minors football clubs, with Maidstone Utd winning the Under 8 group and Larkfield winning at Under 10s.

Maidstone Utd took the honours and picked up the Community shield. It is hoped that this event will be an annual fixture between these three clubs, after the success of this year.

The day continued with many of the local groups and organisations represented and it was good to see so many of the local community able to participate in sports they normally would not have the opportunity to try.

Thanks must go out to the Petanque Club, Ditton Bowls Club, St Peter & St Paul’s Pre-school, Ditton Infant school PTA, Ditton C of E Junior school PTA, Ditton Karate Club, Ditton Short Mat Bowls Club, the tennis club, Kixx Martial Arts display team, together with John & Maureen Millard for their refreshment supplies.

Ditton Minors would like to thank the parish council for all its help in allowing us to put on this event, council chairman Mike Porter for handing out all our trophies.

Friends of Kent Churches
THE annual Sponsored Bike Ride and Walk has been running for more than 20 years and this year promises to be a really successful day. The event takes place on Saturday, September 13, from 10am to 6pm.

More than 700 churches across Kent will be involved, welcoming riders and walkers, often with refreshments.

Money is raised through sponsorship and is shared between your nominated church and the Friends of Kent Churches, who give grants for church repairs. Last year more than £140,000 was raised.

Plan your own route, long or short, flat or hilly, challenging or relaxed, whatever suits you. This is a lovely day out for all the family.

For more information, sponsor forms, T-shirts and more, contact Carolyn Millen on 01622 843383, or carolymillen@btinternet.com.

DAMARA
THE Ditton and Malling Active Retirement Association, invited a group of people from our twin town of Rang-du-Fliers to its Tea Dance on April 16 at Ditton Community Centre.

A welcome lunch was arranged by the Ditton twinning committee and was held at Ditton Bowls Club.

After lunch members and guests walked over the the Community Centre for an afternoon of ballroom and disco dancing with music provided by The Two Jays.

Tea and cakes were supplied by the ladies of Damara and every one had a great and convivial afternoon
Ditton Twinning Association

THE annual Christmas Fayre will be held on Sunday, November 30, at Ditton Community Centre, 1pm to 4pm.

Why not come along and bring your children to visit Santa in his Grotto. Lots of Christmas goodies for sale, presents, cards, wrappings etc.

Stalls are £10 and if you or any local club wishes to have a stall, contact Tony Mulcuck on 01732 844195 or at 8a Bradbourne Lane, Ditton, Aylesford, Kent ME20 6PA.

Ditton Heritage Centre
WE ARE well on the way to completing the renovation of the old Victorian schoolroom. The last piece of the puzzle will be the restoration of the toilet and store block at the rear of the building.

As a fund-raising event towards this project, we are running a cake, craft and nearly-new stall at the Heritage Centre on Friday, July 11, from 3pm to 4.30pm.

As part of the fund-raising, we are also embarking on a Buy-a-Brick programme whereby you can purchase a brick for the new block and receive a certificate for just £1.

If you wish to support this programme, contact either Liz and John Day on 01732 840937 or Tony and Maralyn Mulcuck on 01732 844195.

Parish Walk
THREE parish councillors and five parishioners set out to walk the foot-paths on the south side of the A20 on Saturday, May 24.

It was a very pleasant, sunny morning and the four-mile ramble took just two hours to complete.

The purpose of the walk was to inspect the footpaths and report back to KCC any problems we found.

We will be walking the footpaths on the north side of the village in the Autumn.

BACK in 1994 Ditton, together with a French town allocated to them by the Kent Association of Parish Councils, entered and won first prize in a competition run by Eurotunnel. This resulted in official twinning ceremonies taking place the following year, both in Ditton and in Rang-du-Fliers.

Since then, friendships have been formed between many groups on both sides of the Channel. Ditton now has a thriving Petanque club and Rang-du-Fliers residents have taken up Short Mat Bowls. Matches take place on a regular basis in both villages.

Ditton Infants' School have visited the local school in France during June for several years now, and will be joined this year by parents and children from Ditton Junior School. The children exchange details of their school life and send greetings back and forth at Christmas. Football and table tennis tournaments have taken place and Ditton residents are always invited to attend the Bastille Day celebrations in July.

We have recently entertained a group of 35 "Marcheurs", including their Mayor, who, accompanied by some English ramblers, walked in our local countryside. They stayed the whole weekend and we were given the opportunity to re-pay some of their hospitality. The picture was taken outside Papa's Restaurant after they had enjoyed an English breakfast.

The welcome extended to people from Ditton when they visit Rang-du-Fliers is second to none and is always accompanied by good food and good company. Whether you speak French or not, you are guaranteed to make friends.

Rang-du-Fliers is close enough for a day visit (about an hour's drive from the Channel Tunnel) but there are also some extremely comfortable places to stay overnight.

Why not come along to a meeting of Ditton Twinning Association and see what it's all about? If you are interested, you can contact Eileen Jones on 01732 842458 or at dandejones@tiscali.co.uk

The Twinning Association will be holding a Christmas Fair on Sunday, November 30, between 1pm-4pm, as part of its fund-raising programme. Father Christmas will be there and stallholders will be selling Christmas goodies. If you know of anyone who would like a stall, please spread the word.

I AM pleased to be able to report that things have been pretty quiet in Ditton with only a couple of things to report.

We had to deal with a fire at twenty to ten on the evening of March 27 in the newly refurbished Ditton club in New Road. Two appliances were needed and it took them just over an hour until the scene was safe to leave.
We did receive another ‘Sat Nav Says’ call to a car stuck in the ford in Bradbourne Lane, fortunately control were able to ascertain that no-one was in danger and decided not to send any appliances on this occasion.

By the time you read this article, you should find that the ford is now closed to vehicles, albeit with temporary concrete blocks for the next few months until Kent Highways are able to put a permanent closure in.

I am sure that you are all aware of the very tragic and premature death in a road traffic crash of a young 16-year-old girl after the car in which she was a passenger collided with a skip, just a couple of miles away in St. Michael’s Close, Aylesford.

Kent Fire & Rescue Service are in-creasing their work in preventing these needless deaths, visiting schools throughout the county trying to educate tomorrow’s drivers to ‘think and drive’.

Young drivers aged between 17 and 25 years of age represent only 10 per cent of drivers on the road but account for 27 per cent of all car drivers and passengers killed or seriously injured. More than half (54 per cent) of car passengers killed or seriously injured are under 25.

Please remember that Home Fire Safety Checks are offered by Kent Fire & Rescue Service.

Even if you do not need the free smoke alarm on offer, we are able to come round and give advice on basic fire prevention and making an escape plan.

If you would like to take advantage of this please phone 0800 923 7000 and book an appointment.

If there is anything here that you would like to discuss please feel free to phone me on 01732 870495.

THE Kent Benefits Partnership was set up by the councils in Kent and Medway to help people claim the money they are missing out on in Council Tax Benefit and Housing Benefit.

She said “It was a great help having a home visitor to fill in the form and I am much better off now thanks to KBP.”

Entitlement to Council Tax Benefit and Housing Benefit is based on your income and savings. You must have less than £16,000 in savings (unless you receive Guarantee Pension Credit).

The amount of income you can have varies depending on your circumstances. However, occupational pensions or low earnings do not necessarily mean you wouldn’t qualify.

WOULD you leave a pile of £10 notes on the dashboard of your car in full view of anyone who happens to pass by? Probably not – so I would urge vehicle owners to take the same common sense approach towards all of their valuables, particularly Sat Navs.

Thefts from vehicles are often opportunistic crimes so you can help by being careful not to leave anything of value in your car and to make sure that sun roofs and windows are closed and all doors locked when you leave your vehicle.

Don’t give anyone the opportunity to see you putting your valuables in the boot or the glove box, as there are no real hiding places.

Kent Police will be focusing on thefts from vehicles in the coming weeks, so look out for police officers at local beauty spots who will be offering drivers crime reduction advice.

If your sat nav is portable, keep it safe by taking it, together with the support cradle and suction pads, with you when you leave the car.

Wipe away any suction pad marks left on the windscreen or dashboard, as thieves will look for these signs.

Mark your sat nav system with your postcode and house number, your vehicle registration number or other unique number, using the special security markers widely available.

Property that is marked is less desirable to a thief as it is harder to sell on. Also, if your property is stolen and it is marked there is a greater chance that you will get it back.

Finally, if a criminal is arrested with property that is marked it is easier for the police to prove that the property is stolen and charge the offender.

Make a note of the make, model and serial number of your sat nav and keep this information somewhere safe i.e. not in your car!

Don’t leave any valuables on view in your car. Never leave the keys in the ignition when the car is unattended, even when you are merely paying for petrol or visiting a recycling centre.

¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬

WELL, the summer’s here. Nice hot days followed by warm evenings. We have had some very hot nights so just a little reminder to everyone.

On going to bed please remember to shut the windows and lock the doors. Let’s not give opportunist thieves the chance to enter premises.

Those of you who have Satellite Navigation Systems in your vehicles, please remember to remove them, and remove the mark on the windscreen where the Sat Nav has been. If the thieves cannot see it, they won’t want it.

There have been a lot of thefts in the surrounding area (thankfully not in Ditton), but due to this, could residents living near the schools and church be extra vigilant of any suspicious behaviour around these locations.

If you are a resident of Ditton Parish and did not receive a copy of Ditton Gazette, please contact Parish Council Office, Ditton Community Centre, Kilnbarn Road, Ditton, Aylesford, Kent ME20 6AH, telephone 01732 844749 or email clerk@dittonparishcouncil.gov.uk


Summer 2008 Extracts >>Back to Gazette Archive<<