Election 2019

Local elections are taking place on Thursday the 2nd of May 2019.

All 47 Swale Borough Council seats are being contested, along with town and parish councils.

There will also be a by-election for the Sittingbourne North division for Kent County Council.

You can find out more about each of these, including who the candidates are in each election, on the Swale Borough Council elections pages >> www.swale.gov.uk/elections

To vote in the elections residents must be on the electoral register. This was updated in autumn last year as part of Swale council’s annual canvass to make sure the resister is up to date.

If you’ve recently moved house you can register at >> www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
If you’re not sure if you’re on the register, you can call the helpline on: 01795 417 316.

The deadline for registering to vote is midnight on Friday the 12th of April. You do not need to re-apply if you are already on the register - if you're unsure, call the helpline on: 01795 417 316.

The deadline to apply to vote by post, is 5:00pm on Monday the 15th of April, and the deadline to apply for a proxy vote is 5:00pm on Wednesday the 24th of April.

For more information visit the Swale Borough Council voting and elections pages >> www.swale.gov.uk/voting-elections 

Upchurch Village Hall is our Polling Station in the village and will be open from 7:00am until 10:00pm.

Election of Borough Councillors for the Hartlip, Newington and Upchurch Borough Ward

For the election of 2 Borough Councillors.

Residents can vote for no more than 2 candidates in this election.

The candidates are:

Alan Horton - The Conservative Party Candidate

Amy Leggatt - Labour Party

Richard Palmer - Swale Independents - Putting local people first

John Wright - The Conservative Party Candidate

Election of Parish Councillors for the Upchurch Parish Council

8 residents have stood for Upchurch Parish Council.

The following persons have been elected to Upchurch Parish Council, without contest:

John Arnold
Pamela Denny
Alan Horton
Gerry Lewin

Janet Marshall
Peter Masson
Tyrone Ripley
Gary Rosewell

At the end of their 4-year term all Parish Councillors effectively retire. Any intent to

re-stand is notified to Swale Borough Council by means of a nomination form. At the same time, any other qualifying resident of the parish can also submit their candidacy to Swale. At the close of registration the Clerk is notified of the number of candidates.

All nominations have now been submitted to Swale Borough Council and verified. 8 candidates were received for Upchurch which means, with an allocation of 9 councillors this election is uncontested.

These 8 candidates will automatically form the next Parish Council. They will then be in a position to advertise vacancies and 'co-opt' applicants as and when they can. Therefore there is still 1 vacancy.

Upchurch Matters

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Upchurch Parish Council Report - April 2019

Report of the Parish Council April 2019

Cllr Tyrone Ripley (Chairman), Cllr John Arnold (Vice Chairman), Cllr Pam Denny, Cllr Alan Horton, Cllr Gerry Lewin, Cllr Peter Masson, Cllr Janet Marshall, Cllr Gary Rosewell and Cllr Neil Sheppard. Clerk Mrs Wendy Licence.

Upchurch Annual Spring Clean

The annual spring clean was a huge success with a sterling effort from the pupils of Holywell School and the uniformed organisations. The Parish Council is grateful to all who volunteered and helped make the village a better place.

Paddock and Recreation Ground

The Parish Council is obtaining quotations to repair or replace the picket fencing at the Recreation Ground by Oak Lane.

A new litter bin will be installed in the Paddock.

Following increasing concern about dog fouling near the children’s play area, the Parish Council will consider asking for all dogs to be kept on leads in the Paddock. Dog fouling can lead to an increased risk in and toxocara canis can pass from dog poo to humans as Toxocariasis through contaminated sand or soil, and children are at particular risk. The Parish Council asks all dog owners to be responsible and clean up after their dogs.

Upchurch Fete

The Parish Council has awarded a grant of £300 to the Parents & Friends of Holywell School to help with the costs of running the Annual Village Fete.

Planning

i. Ref: 19/500999/FULL

Address: Starborne Oak Lane Upchurch Sittingbourne Kent ME9 7BB

Proposal: Demolition of existing bungalow and outbuildings, and erection of a new four bedroom detached dwelling, including new boundary wall, entrance gates and driveway.

Councillors considered the application and agreed that the officer's recommendations should be accepted and that neighbours' comments should be taken into account.

ii. PINS reference: APP/V2255/W/18/3218833

Ref: 18/502708/FULL

Proposal: Erection of two detached chalet bungalows with associated parking and extension of residential garden (serving Lord Stanley Bungalow) with revised access arrangements following demolition of existing building.

Location: The Old Woodyard Land Rear Of Lord Stanley Bungalow Otterham Quay Lane

Councillors agreed to reassert their objections to the proposal to the Planning Inspectorate.

Allotments

There are still a few plots available in Upchurch and anyone interested in having an allotment garden should contact the Clerk. There is a preferential rate for residents.

Environment

The Parish Council has secured a grant towards hiring a fully planted planter which will be sited near the sign, delivery is expected to be end of May/ early June.

The Council has agreed to hold the annual Best Kept Garden Competition and Councillors will judge the gardens along with the residents from the village who assist the competition judging process.

Parking issues at Holywell School

Following concerns about inconsiderate parking, the Swale Parking Enforcement Team are monitoring the area. Drivers are requested to park in a safe and considerate manner, failure to do so may result in a fine.

Date of next meetings:

Full Council - Thursday 16^th May 2019 at 7:30pm in Upchurch Village Hall.

The Planning Committee and General Purposes Committee - Wednesday 22^nd May at 7:30pm in the Committee Room of the Village Hall.

All residents are welcome to attend the meetings and there is a time for members of the public to comment, raise concerns or ask questions.

Wendy Licence - Clerk to the Parish Council

Tel: 01634 363906

Email: clerkupc@outlook.com

Website: www.upchurchpc.kentparishes.gov.uk

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Focus On Rainham

Celebrating the local community at a FREE family fun day in Rainham

Residents are invited to a jam packed FREE family day out to celebrate living in Medway.

Medway Council organised four new local festival days in 2018 to mark 20 years since the founding of Medway and to celebrate community identities. The Focus On events are designed for local people and highlight all that is great about each area.

This year’s first Focus On Festival will be held at Cozenton Park, Rainham, on Saturday, 18th May, from 10:30am to 4:30pm.

Visitors can watch top class in-line skating, scooter, skateboard and BMX demonstrations and get involved in coaching and competitions with Team Extreme. People of all ages can also have-a-go with balance bikes and mountain bikes with Action Wheels.

There will also be a flower fair with stalls offering a range of plants, flowers, garden necessities and ornaments.

The popular climbing wall will also return this year as well as the bandstand with live music and performances.

The Strolling Gardeners twin brothers Bob and Tom will be out and about greeting visitors at Cozenton Park. On their travels they will help the balding to sprout hair, help children bloom and treat others to a ‘fun filled five a day’.

Test your uni-cycling skills in the Big Top Hullaballoo with circus workshops including tightrope walking and juggling. There will also be live circus shows and crafts.

Dawn Hudd, Assistant Director of Physical and Cultural Regeneration at Medway Council, said:

“Focus On Rainham will be a FREE fun day out for all the family with plenty of activities for residents of all ages to enjoy. I would encourage residents to come along and celebrate their local communities.”

Other Focus On festivals will be held in Walderslade, Strood and Hoo later on in the year.

For more information visit >> www.medway.gov.uk/focuson

Getting there

Parking on site costs £5 (limited spaces available) via Birling Avenue car park. Parking will be aimed primarily at blue badge holders, who can park for FREE.

Bus services include: 132 and 116

These services and more can be found on the Arriva website >> www.arrivabus.co.uk

Medway Council

KCC’s Collection of Parish Registers Goes Online for The First Time

More than 2.6 million records have been digitised, fully indexed and are now available to search online.

New additions join Findmypast’s existing Kent collections to form the most comprehensive online archive of Kent parish registers.

Leading family history website, Findmypast, has announced the online publication of thousands of original parish registers in partnership with Kent County Council.

The new records have been created from more than 3,000 handwritten registers currently held at the Kent History and Library Centre in Maidstone.

These registers have been scanned and digitised in full colour to ensure the highest possible image quality.

More than 2.6 million fully-indexed baptism, wedding banns, marriage and burial records spanning more than 400 years of Kent history are now available to search online exclusively.

By improving access to these rich documents and making them searchable for the first time, Findmypast will provide family historians from around the world with even more opportunities to discover their Kent ancestors.

Researchers can now uncover details of their families past and add new generations to their family tree with greater ease than ever before.

The new release builds on an existing partnership between Findmypast and KCC Archives that has already resulted in the online publication of more than 2.5 million Canterbury Archdeaconry records held by the Canterbury Cathedral Archives.

These new additions join Findmypast’s Canterbury collection and existing collections of Kent Family History Society records to form the most comprehensive online repository of Kent parish registers in the word.

Findmypast’s UK Data Strategy Manager, Paul Nixon, said:

“Now with more than 5 million indexed parish register entries for Kent, Findmypast really is the only show in town if your ancestors put down roots in the Garden of England. We’re thrilled to be working with the Kent History & Library Centre.”

Mike Hill, KCC’s Cabinet Member for Community and Regulatory Services, said:

“We are delighted that the majority of the parish registers held by the Kent Archives service will now be available to view and search around the world for the first time, through the publication of images and indexes on FindMyPast.

We are able to offer free access to FindMyPast in all Kent County Council libraries enabling Kent residents to use these fascinating records without cost and close to their homes.”

Find out more about Findmypast’s collections of Kent records at >> www.kentarchives.org.uk

Upchurch Matters

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Bonnet Stolen - Newington

Hartlip, Newington & Upchurch Ward

Crime Number: 46/66424/19

Between Saturday the 30th of March and Monday the 1st of April, the bonnet of a Landrover, property of The Environment Agency was stolen from Playstool Road 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

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Raffles Style Afternoon Cream Tea at Upchurch Village Hall

Friends of Upchurch Village Hall invite you to a special event on Saturday the 8th of June, from 4:00pm until 7:00pm in our own Village Hall.

Featuring for our enjoyment:

Delicate selection of sandwiches, consisting of smoked salmon, cucumber, cheese and ham.

Delicious selection of small cakes, scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream and spectacular large exhibition cakes.

All the above served with as much tea, coffee you may need.

And for your entertainment the ever popular Rich Phillips.

Tickets - £7.50 are on sale now, available from any UpARA meeting and from any Village Hall committee member.

John Tutt

Friends of Upchurch Village Hall

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