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Maidstone Road Surgery Rainham, including Upchurch Surgery.
Changes to Surgery Opening Hours
Extended opening hours evening appointments at the surgery will cease from Saturday the 1st of October 2022.
If you require an extended opening hours evening appointment, please telephone the usual number: 01634 231423 and follow the instructions. You will be referred to another location within the Rainham PCN area.
Flu Vaccinations
Please telephone or call in at Upchurch or Rainham surgeries to make an appointment.
Covid Vaccinations
The practice is offering a day of Covid vaccinations on Wednesday the 26th of October 2022. Please contact the surgery to make an appointment.
Ray Kemsley
Chair - Surgery Patient Participation Group - Upchurch & Rainham
St Mary's Church will be open again on Wednesday the 28th of September for 'A Cuppa and a Chat'.
We will have the kettle on in the Lady Chapel from 10:00am until 12:00pm.
Followed by a time of prayer for the village until 12:30pm.
A warm welcome awaits you - just call in, and we will be pleased to see you!
Jenny Giles - Upchurch River Valley Golf CourseTelephone: 01634 360626
The folk from St Mary's and Uplift will be celebrating Harvest on Sunday the 2nd of October, followed by Harvest Lunch in the Village Hall at 12:00pm.
This will be a songs of praise service at 10:30am, with a mixture of traditional harvest hymns and contemporary songs. We are blessed to have with us on the day, Esther, who is the Project Manager for Swale Foodbank. Esther is going to tell us a bit about the work of the Foodbank across Swale.
Our Harvest gifts this year will be going to Swale Foodbank.
After the service, we will be having a Harvest Lunch of homemade soup and bread, followed by apple crumble and custard/cream. This will be in the Village Hall.
We will be asking for donations for the food, with the money going to the work of Swale Foodbank. We will need a rough number for catering purposes.
All are really very welcome.
Gill Gay
Hartlip, Newington & Upchurch Ward
Crime Number: 46/182830/22
At around 21:30 on Saturday the 17th of September, somebody covered their face and stole a Ring doorbell from a property in Bull Lane, Newington.
If you have any information that could help investigators please contact Kent Police on telephone number 101 and quote the relevant crime number above.
For more information on crime prevention visit: www.kent.police.uk
Kent Community Messaging
Saturday 10th December
Teas, Cakes, Crafts, Grand Raffle and more!
With thanks to Upchurch Parish Council, Father Christmas and his giant reindeer have kindly agreed to make an appearance for the children.
The market is being organised by the Village Hall Committee and further details will follow.
Any local businesses and organisations wishing to take a stall should contact:
Gerry Lewin lewing135@btinternet.com 07946 996789
Thank you
David Steward
Chairman - Upchurch Village Hall Management Committee
Your views on Kent Police 2022
Every year, Kent Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Scott conducts his Annual Policing Survey to help shape his Police and Crime Plan.
His survey seeks to understand the views of Kent residents and businesses and whether they agree with the priorities Mr Scott has set for the force and to find out what matters to them and how safe they feel where they live.
The Police and Crime Plan is the document that outlines the priorities that Kent Police is held to account on by Matthew Scott.
He is also keen to know if you have been a victim of crime and, if so, whether you thought the police and victim support services did a good job.
Please take a few minutes to complete this anonymous survey. Your responses will be carefully studied. Your voice matters to help shape what you want your police force to be focused on.
Upchurch Matters
Fancy Dress Optional...
FREE ENTRY • NON-MEMBERS WELCOME
FOOD SERVED UNTIL 8:30PM
Jenny Giles - Upchurch River Valley Golf Course
Telephone: 01634 360626
Look upwards in Westminster Hall, and you will see a beautiful set of curved beams on the ceiling. These have a connection with Upchurch as royal carpenter Hugh Herland of Upchurch designed them and organised the work to lift and hang the beams into place.
Hugh Herland lived in Upchurch with his wife Joan from 1378 to 1391. His carpentry work became so well known that King Richard II made him the royal carpenter. He also worked on projects at the Tower of London, Rochester Castle, Queenborough Castle and many others.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II lying in state below the hammer-beam roof at Westminster Hall.
Work to construct the roof at Westminster Hall began in 1393 and finished in 1399 and was supervised by Hugh Herland and stone mason Henri Yevele. The hall's timber beams and arches were framed in Farnham, Surrey and then transported on barges and wagons to Westminster. The arches were joined at the apex with a span of 60 feet. These held the weight of the roof. The arches themselves were supported by buttressed walls. When completed, it became the largest hammer-beam roof in the world and is still considered an architectural masterpiece.
Because of the height, constructing the roof with the buttressed walls proved challenging and highly dangerous. The beams had to be lifted 92 feet and fitted into position by men working on very tall ladders. The result of the project involving many craftsmen is a large hall not obstructed with pillars that became the largest in Northern Europe and one of the great masterpieces of the medieval period.
When you are viewing Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II lying in state, look above to the ceiling where you will see the great work of Hugh Herland from Upchurch.
David Wood
St Mary's Church will be open on Sunday, the 18th of September, between 7:45pm and 8:15pm for One-Minute Silence - National Moment of Reflection at 8:00pm to mourn the sad passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and reflect on her life and legacy.
Come and join us as we also pray for our new King, His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty The Queen Consort Camilla.
Gill Gay
Hartlip, Newington & Upchurch Ward
Crime Number: 46/179907/22
At around 16:35 on Tuesday the 13th of September, somebody tried to damage the front door of residential property in Watling Drive, Newington.
If you have any information that could help investigators please contact Kent Police on telephone number 101 and quote the relevant crime number above.
For more information on crime prevention visit: www.kent.police.uk
Kent Community Messaging
Maidstone Road Rainham Surgery, including Upchurch Surgery.
Maidstone Road Rainham Surgery, including Upchurch Surgery, is expecting Flu Vaccine deliveries in the last week of September 2022.
Therefore, the practice hopes to begin vaccinations in early October and will call eligible patients in to receive their Flu vaccination.
A further update will follow.
Ray KemsleyChair - Surgery Patient Participation Group - Upchurch & Rainham
Swale Foodbank Project Manager Esther Hurwood.
Dear Upchurch,
Thank you, Upchurch. What a damp morning it was, with soo much traffic due to the roadworks on the A2 - London Road, and probably, the closure of the M2 coastbound slip roads at Stockbury. But it didn't put you off. Thank you for turning up with your bags full of love. As usual, a fantastic response!
Richard couldn't help us yesterday as he was at TESCO picking up food. But I had help from Georgina and Roger, thank you both.
There is soo much need at the moment. Food prices are definitely on their way up, and the need is definitely not going away anytime soon. It's going to be a long winter. But I know you, Upchurch, will be holding the hand of those who are struggling. You will be walking beside them with your generous gifts. Your generosity is pleasing to God.
We will be collecting your donations for Swale Foodbank at the bus stop opposite the church next month on Wednesday the 12th of October, between 10:30am and 11:30am.
Thank you all so much 😀
Click montage to enlarge.
Public proclamation
Following the sad passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, a local ceremony to proclaim His Majesty King Charles III the new sovereign took place at Upchurch Village Hall on Monday, 12th September at 3:00pm.
Headteacher Darran Callaghan and teacher Jackie Warner accompanied children from Holywell School who joined residents and Parish Councillors in the sunshine to ensure this village tradition continued.
Swale Ward Cllr Alan Horton thanked everyone for attending and gave an introductory speech before Parish Council Chairman Cllr Tyrone Ripley made the local proclamation of the new monarch, which ended with GOD SAVE THE KING. Cllr Horton then proposed and led three cheers for His Majesty King Charles III to finish.
Protocol and guidance dictate the day and timings for local events following the national proclamation on Saturday, 10th September and further proclamations across the nations of the UK on Sunday, 11th.
Book of condolence open
A book of condolence for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is open at St Mary's Church for residents to sign and leave personal messages in the Lady Chapel.
Upchurch Matters
Swale Foodbank Collection
Dear Upchurch,
I will be collecting your foodbank donations again at the bus stop opposite the church on Wednesday the 14th of September between 10:30am and 11:30am.
Please bring your items in carrier bags. Warehouse Coordinator Richard Divers will then deliver your donations to the Swale Foodbank Warehouse, part of the Trussell Trust.
The warehouse is in need of every item, but top of the list is:
■ Tins Meat
■ Tins Tomatoes
■ Jars of Sauce
■ Tins Soup
■ Tins Vegetables
■ Coffee
■ Biscuits
■ Chocolate Bars
Of course, all donations are helpful, providing the food is long life and well within date. I hope this list helps and you can donate some of the above.
The empty shelves at Swale Foodbank.
The Swale Foodbank account details for anyone who can't get food items to us and would like to donate are:
Bank: Natwest Business
Account Name: Swale Food Bank
Account No: 29021677
Sort Code: 60-19-25
Thank you in advance for your loving generosity ♥️
'A Cuppa and a Chat'
While you are there, why not call into the church for 'A Cuppa and a Chat' in the Lady Chapel.
We will have the kettle on from 10:00am.
This will be followed by prayer for the village, our King, our Government, those who are struggling and for anyone who needs our prayers.
There is also the opportunity to sit quietly in the Lady Chapel and give thanks for the life of the Queen. There is a book people can write in and candles that can be lit.
A warm welcome awaits you - just call in, and we will be pleased to see you.
The State Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will take place at Westminster Abbey on Monday 19th September at 1100hrs BST.
Prior to the State Funeral, The Queen will Lie-in-State in Westminster Hall for four days, to allow the public to pay their respects.
Nina Henley
Clerk and Proper Officer to Upchurch Parish Council
Tel: 07798 600696
Queen Elizabeth II 1926 - 2022.
Following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Cllr Simon Clark, Mayor of the Borough of Swale, said:
“It is with enormous sadness that we learned of the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and I would like to express our sincere condolences on behalf of Swale Borough Council and the people of the Borough of Swale to the entire Royal Family.
“The Queen was known across the world for her strong sense of duty and commitment to serving the country and the Commonwealth.
“Her Platinum Jubilee showed the respect and admiration we had for her tireless work, and as we mourn her passing we must reflect on how fortunate we have been to live through her reign.”
As a mark of respect, flags are being flown at half-mast across all council buildings.
Books of Condolence are being opened at Swale House, Faversham Town Council Offices and Sheppey Gateway to allow local people to pay their respects from 10:00am to 4:00pm on weekdays and 10:00am to 12 midday on Saturdays.
Floral tributes will be laid at the war memorials in Sittingbourne, Sheerness and Faversham.
Also, as a mark of respect, civic and council events and meetings have been cancelled until after the funeral.
Swale Borough Council
It will be necessary to close part of Boxted Lane, Newington from Friday 30th September 2022 for up to 1 day between the hours of 07:00 and 19:00.Boxted Lane, Newington will be closed from the junction with Breach Lane to outside the entrance of Watercress Barns, to the extent indicated by signs and barriers on site.
The alternative route is Breach Lane, Bricklands, Boxted Lane and vice versa.
The closure is required for the safety of the public and workforce while pole testing works are undertaken by Openreach.
For information regarding this closure, please contact Openreach on: 0800 023 2023, who will be able to assist with the scope of these works.
KCC 24hr Contact Centre: 03000 418181
For details of roadworks see: https://one.network
Kent County Council - Highways, Transportation & Waste
Are you interested in the history of Upchurch?
Then please come along to my illustrated talk at St Mary's Church, Upchurch on Saturday the 24th of September at 7:00pm
There will be lots of pictures and stories of Upchurch through the ages with help from our village historian David Wood who will also be there.
Tickets are £5 at the door (children free) and all proceeds go to the Bell Tower Restoration Fund.
Online donations welcomed
A JustGiving fundraising page has been published to help towards the restoration of St Mary's Church Bell Tower.
Thank you
Charity Registration No: 606311
Visualisation of the M2 junction 5 - A249 Stockbury interchange once improvements are complete. Click image to enlarge.
Stockbury roundabout line painting
Sunday 11th September
Following feedback from stakeholders and the local community, National Highways will be refreshing the white lines on the Stockbury roundabout ahead of the M2 junction 5 coastbound carriageway slip road closures, which begin officially on Monday the 12th of September.
To do this, they will be closing all links to and from the Stockbury roundabout overnight on Sunday the 11th of September. This is to reduce the need for further closures in the future. The closures will be staggered, starting from 8:00pm.
When the roundabout reopens at 5:00am on Monday the 12th of September, the M2 junction 5 coastbound carriageway entry and exit slip roads will remain closed as originally planned.
M2 slip road closures
September 2022 to January 2023
National Highways is to close 2 busy slip roads on the coastbound carriageway of the M2 at Sittingbourne for 4 months as part of their major upgrade and improvement works to the M2 junction 5 - A249 Stockbury interchange.
The coastbound carriageway entry and exit slip roads between the M2 and A249 will be closed from 8:00pm on Sunday the 11th of September 2022 (to set up traffic management) until Friday the 13th of January 2023.
The closures mean you will not be able to access Stockbury roundabout from the M2 coastbound or join the M2 coastbound from Stockbury roundabout at junction 5 during the closures. Please use signed diversions to join or leave the M2 at junction 5.
In January 2023, both slip roads will reopen. Access from the M2 coastbound to the A249 towards Sittingbourne will temporarily be via the Stockbury roundabout until the dedicated slip road opens in spring 2023.
Diversion routes
M2 junction 5 coastbound entry and exit slip road diversions. Click image to enlarge.
To join the M2 coastbound during the closures, National Highways recommends vehicles use the M2 Londonbound from Stockbury roundabout to travel to junction 4 and return, which National Highways say will add approximately 10 to 12 minutes onto the journey time.
Drivers travelling coastbound will need to leave the M2 at junction 3 and use the A229, M20 and A249 to reach the Stockbury roundabout, which National Highways say will add approximately 15 minutes onto the journey time.
If you miss junction 3, you can travel to junction 6 and return to junction 5 using the Londonbound carriageway, adding a further 25 minutes onto the journey time.
Delays on the A2 - London Road are predicted during the closures due to heavier than usual traffic between Bowaters roundabout at the junction with A278 - Hoath Way, Gillingham and Brenley Corner roundabout at the junction with A2 - Boughton Bypass, M2 and A299, Faversham.
Further information
Upchurch Matters
Saturday 17th September - Sunday 18th SeptemberAll events are free and part of the National Trust's Heritage Open Days. However, places are limited and must be booked in advance at: www.eventbrite.co.uk
For more details contact the group at: newingtonhistorygroup@outlook.com; through its website: www.newingtonhistory.uk; or call: 01795 842711.
Follow on Facebook: Newington History Group, and Twitter: @newingtonhg
Richard Thompstone - Newington History Group
Saturday 10th September between 10:00am - 11:30am
Homemade Cakes, Jams, Pickles, Scones and Savouries
Also Puzzles, Books, Bric-à-brac and sometimes Plants
Something for everyone!
Refreshments
Please help support this ancient building - Thank you
🍰 🍓 🧩 📚 🎨 🪴 ☕️ ➕
Upchurch Matters
Oliver Twist is the most famous fictional character with a local workhouse connection which Charles Dickens based on the old Chatham Workhouse. Many Upchurch residents also found their way into a similar place known as the Milton Union.
For most people living in Upchurch during the 19th century, work was hard, physical and seasonal, particularly on farms where most residents worked and where crop failures, bad weather and low prices caused farmers to periodically lay workers off. For those in poor families suffering long term unemployment support from the parish became available but with the introduction of Poor Law Reform in 1834, the system of poor relief was removed from the parish and became the responsibility of the workhouse.
The Milton Union was established just north of Sittingbourne in the village of Milton Regis in 1835 and was overseen by an elected board of twenty guardians. Upchurch, along with seventeen other local Swale villages came under its jurisdiction. The idea was to encourage able bodied people to work by making conditions in the workhouse harsh. However, not all those who entered were able bodied. Those with mental disorders, sickness, old age and infirmity, pregnant women and orphans also found their way in. Old age pensions and sickness benefit didn’t exist in those days so if a man couldn’t support his family or get help from relatives’ entry into the workhouse was almost inevitable.
To enter the Milton Union, poor people could make their own way there, attend the weekly meeting of the Board of Guardians or apply to the relieving officer who visited their parish each week. They could also be ordered there by the parish overseer. Upon arrival, newcomers were stripped, bathed, covered with flea powder, issued with a uniform and registered as able bodied or sick. People stayed there for varying amounts of time according to their circumstances and could be released at their own request if they sought work, signed off by the medical officer if they recovered from sickness or by death.
A basic diet of bread and cheese was served for breakfast and the main meal although meat and vegetables were sometimes served with the main meal. Water was the only drink available for inmates except for old people who were allowed to drink tea. Therefore, the workhouse was designed to be a deterrent, offering back breaking, gruelling work like picking oakum, smashing stones or cutting wood.
In the early years, from 1834 to 1870, only a relatively small number of Upchurch residents spent time in the workhouse for different reasons. For example, in 1835, Rosetta Coveney, aged seventeen, entered the Milton Union, although when given leave to attend church on February 7th, 1836, she failed to return. In 1835 the Union admissions book recorded William Brinstead, a widower aged 79, described as ‘wholly disabled’. He spent his entire old age as an inmate in the union.
Milton Workhouse 1887.
Thanks to Peter Higginbotham for use of the photograph.
For more information on the history of the workhouse,
In 1840 eleven Upchurch people were admitted to the Milton Union, including the Maud children who had been deserted and left as orphans, Daniel Luckhurst with bad legs, Mary Seager with no place to live, James Clark with ague and Mary Pepper for having a ‘bastard.’
There is little evidence of misbehaviour by workhouse inmates from Upchurch but there was an exception in May 1841 when Mary Seager, formerly an agricultural worker from Wetham Green, was sent from the Milton Union to Canterbury jail for 21 days due to ‘bad conduct’. According to the union record book, she refused to pick oakum and was sent to the magistrate for ‘the most violent language to the Master and two of the Guardians.’ She periodically returned to the union, then in June 1853, after being registered as destitute, was again committed to prison for refusing work offered to her. From 1848 to the 1870s, she became a frequent visitor to the Milton Union for reasons which included sickness, rheumatism, destitution and no place to live.
Some Upchurch people eventually died in the Milton Union, like Mary Grigsby, who first entered the institution in 1836 and eventually died there of old age in 1859. In 1862 Sampson Scamp died there from unknown causes after spending various periods inside due to destitution. On July 7th, 1862, James Muggeridge was admitted by order of the village overseer because of fever. He died there several days later on July 12th.
Sometimes a girl who got pregnant out of wedlock could be turned out by her family and sent to the union on the order of the parish overseer. This is what happened to Mary Grundy on June 19th, 1862. An illegitimate child was usually entered in the admittance column of the union register as ‘bastard,’ a stigma that remained for life.
Some people only stayed in the workhouse short term due to seasonal unemployment. On July 31st, 1838, Upchurch resident John Hughes with his wife and five children were admitted but they were discharged on August 8th. James Watts was admitted, with his wife and four children on April 13th but only stayed until April 21st.
Ultimately, the workhouse was a last resort for most able bodied people because they viewed it with a sense of social stigma and dreaded the thought of going there, in the same way as going to prison. However, the institution served its purpose for desperate and needy people right up to the 1920s, when it finally came to an end.
About David
David was born and raised at Ham Green and still lives there today.
He writes from personal experience about Upchurch village life and the changes that have taken place over the years.
David's book, Memories of Upchurch, is a very readable and detailed historical study of the village and is available direct from David at: david3702001@yahoo.co.uk price £12 + postage and packing.
Hartlip, Newington & Upchurch Ward
Crime Number: 46/171443/22
Between 00:01 on Friday the 26th of August and 11:46 on Thursday the 1st of September, somebody stole a grey Audi Quattro, Reg No: KS06***, from Holywell Lane, Upchurch.
If you have any information that could help investigators please contact Kent Police on telephone number 101 and quote the relevant crime number above.
For more information on crime prevention visit: www.kent.police.uk
Kent Community Messaging
Sponsored by Upchurch River Valley Golf Course Ltd
At the time of writing, temperatures are pushing the 30s, drought conditions have been announced and a hosepipe ban must surely follow. Unless you have been able to water regularly your garden probably looks like a post-apocalyptic wasteland. The ground is rock hard and if we do get a downpour it will run off and lead to flooding. Pleasant ideas of outdoor living run the risk of heat stroke, butane is going through the roof and BBQ buns are astronomical. If this continues into September we may well see standpipes in the street. Having said that come January and February we will look back with fond memories of a wonderful Summer.
I really don’t know what to say about the lawn, it’s amazing how crispy it is underfoot as you walk over it. Now we are on a meter, I gave up watering it a month ago and now it is scorchio! Walking the Junkyard Mutt early yesterday morning I noticed a slight mist over the fields and the grass was slightly moist to the touch. Looking over the fields there was a faint green shimmer that hints at a recovery. However, this year, it is a lost cause and we will just have to wait for the Autumn rains to see how well it returns. Normal English meadow grasses cannot cope with this degree of heat and drought and maybe we have to consider tougher grasses. The most drought resistant grass seed are Zoysia, Bermuda, Kikuyu and Kentucky Blue Grass. It may need a trip to the seed merchant to look for a bespoke mix of seed that has a chance of handling these conditions.
Oh dear, it’s happened again!
Hopefully, you have been able to water the vegetable patch. The lawn will come back but the Runner Beans won’t. This weather, they need a good drenching every day along with all the veg. Despite that, the flowers are dropping and the yield has been poor so far. The Marrows have turned out to be Green Bush and I can only guess that they are from the Tiger Cross Marrows that were grown 2 years ago that are an F1 hybrid of Green Bush and have reverted back. Either way, it is good to have stuffed Marrow again. Hopefully, your main crop Potatoes are holding up and ready for lifting this month along with a lot of other crops which can be harvested now.
Borders and containers also need a lot of water to keep them going and you can use a hosepipe to fill a watering can which avoids running up and down the garden. Even established shrubs have needed watering this year as everything has looked a bit limp and leaves are shedding. A mulch around the roots of shrubs and fruit trees can help to retain moisture in the soil. Monty Don commented last week that maybe we need to start facing up to hotter Summers and look at more Mediterranean planting. Attractive hard landscaping can reduce the size of lawns and borders with a switch to perennials and shrubs that can handle drought.
Much of the fruit is ready for harvest. Plums, Cherries and Apricots have probably been picked by now with Apples and Pears ready this month. Some varieties like Braeburns run on into October. Keep watering, feeding and mulching up until harvest. Tidy up Strawberry plants and cut back Raspberry canes.
September is also the transition time from Summer to Autumn and it will be interesting to see what happens to temperatures. All this hot, dry weather is enough to give someone a thirst. As my mind wanders to Mediterranean gardens I can’t help thinking of ice cold Italian lagers. The big question is which one?.... Peroni Nastro Azzuro or Birra Moretti?…. I know I will go for both.
UHS is always looking for new members and tries to encourage a fun attitude towards friendly competition. So if you want to grow your own fruit, vegetables, and flowers or even enter any of the shows we hold each year, please get in touch. We would be happy to hear from you.
Sean Barry - Upchurch Horticultural Society
