Happy Easter

Happy Easter 🌷🐇🥚🌼

This year feels very different with families unable to be together and many worried about the future.

Unable to gather, the best way we can come together now is in our fight against this awful virus.

Please stay at home this Easter and save lives.

Upchurch Matters

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Road Closure: A2 - Newington High Street - Temporary Minibus Shuttle Timetable to the Villages

Medway operator ASD Coaches is running a temporary minibus shuttle between the villages and TESCO - Rainham, where it connects with Chalkwell 326/327 bus services.

Kent County Council made the order to temporarily prohibit through traffic on various roads in Swale for essential gas main upgrade work which includes the full closure of the A2 - Newington High Street, beginning Thursday 2nd April with an estimated completion date of Wednesday 29th April 2020.

The shuttle service will finish when SGN complete their works and the A2 is fully reopen.

Click timetable to enlarge.

Chalkwell 326/327 buses are still operating on a temporary timetable and via the M2 Motorway. They need feeder minibuses at TESCO - Rainham so that people from Newington, Lower Halstow and Upchurch can change onto the main buses in order to access Sittingbourne and Medway.

The temporary Chalkwell 326/327 timetables have been posted in the bus shelter in Horsham Lane, Upchurch.

More info at:

www.chalkwell.co.uk/timetables/326-327-328

Tel: 01795 423982

www.asdtransport.com
Tel: 01634 726412

Upchurch Matters

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April News from Upchurch Horticultural Society - From the Potting Shed

Sponsored by Upchurch River Valley Golf Course Ltd

What on earth do we make of the last month and where do we go from here. Personally unless you want to stay bottled up indoors (was that really the right expression!) there is no better place than to get out in the garden. If the world is really going to grind to a halt then it’s time to dig for victory and get the vegetable patch up and running. Keep the lawn and the borders tidy and concentrate on fruit and veg to get through the coming months or longer.

Don’t hesitate, get the vegetable patch dug over and fertilised ready for planting. If your broad beans are not in yet do that first followed by the early potatoes which given the mild weather will get started. I have always hailed the virtues of Rocket as a good early but even more so now as it can be ready for lifting after eleven weeks.

Hopefully your seeds arrived back in January so nothing to stop you from getting the propagation going. Use a mix of compost and sharp sand for potting as this will drain and reduce “damping off” of the new seedlings. Find a warm light place to put them and take the covers off as soon as the seeds are up to allow air to get to them. Beans, marrows, courgettes, squashes and pumpkins can go into 3” pots with damp compost and do not really need to be covered, they will be up in 5-10 days. Do not overwater as they are prone to rot which will set you back nearly two weeks by the time you realise. Harden off by putting seedlings outdoors during the day or keep them in cold frames.

Look around the garden to find additional space for planting in the borders or grow bags and containers. I have some bush French Beans which can fill gaps in the borders and Lettuce will go nicely in pots but wait until next month before planting out. Rhubarb should be well under way by now but mulching or fertilising with a little Miracle Grow will keep it racing ahead. I would recommend doing as many vegetables as you can manage as you may well be grateful for it later in the year.

Fruit trees should be pruned by now and spray as required to control pests going forward in the year. Mulch with well rotted compost and fertilise with Miracle Grow which works on nearly everything (although a bit too strong for tomatoes).

In these uncertain days it is wise to give thought to your food supply and an active kitchen garden is better than a punch up in the supermarkets. Sadly it is not possible to grow toilet roll and rhubarb leaves are poisonous, but being able to grow food is a sensible life skill which provides a good measure of independence which may prove important in the future.

Today has been a good day for me on the vegetable patch and the seedlings are breaking through so ready to get going. So I am now settling down and getting bottled up indoors.

We are always looking for new members and try 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 3 shows we hold each year, then please get in touch, we would be happy to hear from you.

If you are interested in becoming a new member, (all ages are welcome), please contact Rosey on: 01634 377812 (evenings) or Email: rosemary@ringwoodaccounting.co.uk

Sean Barry - Upchurch Horticultural Society
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Medway Council - Medway’s Most Vulnerable Residents Catered For

Medway Council, with the help of partner agencies, has delivered more than 35,595 meals to residents most in need during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.

The emergency support service provides help to Medway’s most vulnerable residents, identified by the NHS in the high risk group and most affected by social distancing guidelines, and who do not have any family, friends or neighbours able to support them.

Medway Council supports vulnerable residents throughout the year, offering specialist advice on financial support and health matters, and teams across the council have identified 6,000 Medway residents who are most in need of extra support during this time. Residents that are self-isolating and are identified as being most at risk include older people, those with long-term health conditions and families with low-incomes.

Medway Council has contacted all 6,000 vulnerable residents it has identified to check how they are and if they are in need of support if they do not have anyone else to help them. The Coronavirus: Medway Support project includes an emergency food parcel delivery service, a personal shopper service and someone to collect medicines or prescriptions. It is a collection of voluntary organisations, private companies and public sector employees who are working together to make sure help is provided to everyone who needs it in Medway.

Food parcels include basic essential supplies, such as tinned food, vegetables and rice, as well as other general household products. Thousands of emergency parcels have already been supplied to residents with no other means of help and have provided a vital lifeline for many households across Medway. This service is also being supported by Medway Foodbank, which is part of the UK-wide Trussell Trust network of foodbanks.

The Coronavirus: Medway Support Project also includes a social contact by phone service. Social distancing does not need to mean complete social isolation. It’s important to talk to other people when you’re feeling low or lonely, especially those who have no one else to speak with. A number of Medway organisations are part of this service and providing help to those feeling socially isolated and who need someone to talk to.

Leader of Medway Council, Cllr Alan Jarrett, said:

“The Coronavirus: Medway Support service is providing a lifeline to those identified as being most at risk and unable to leave their homes during the pandemic. Our priority is supporting our most vulnerable residents, who have nobody else to help them. Council teams have been working hard to contact thousands of residents most in need of extra support during the pandemic. The virus has created challenging times for us all, but the response has been inspiring. We’ve had many people volunteer from across Medway offering help and support, strengthening our emergency support service.

We also recognise that there may be other residents in need of extra support during self-isolation. In addition to the 6,000 most vulnerable people we have identified, we are also working closely with our partner agencies across Medway to support additional residents who have no one else to turn to.

Thank you to everyone who is involved in providing this vital emergency service for our most vulnerable residents. Thank you also to all key workers and everyone who is helping to keep Medway’s residents safe.

Stay home, save lives. Thank you.”

For more information on the emergency support service Medway Council has set up, with the help and ongoing support of partner agencies, please visit: www.medway.gov.uk/coronavirussupport

Stay Home, Save Lives

Visit the following websites for the latest advice and updates on coronavirus COVID-19:
Medway Council service updates: medway.gov.uk/coronavirus
Public Health England and NHS advice: nhs.uk/coronavirus
Government social distancing advice: gov.uk/coronavirus

Medway Council

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Swale Borough Council Opens Member Grants Scheme to Support Community

Swale Borough Council has opened their member grants scheme to help voluntary and community groups provide COVID-19 support.

Every year the scheme provides each of Swale’s 47 councillors with £2,400 to support small scale, local community projects that benefit areas such as culture, sport, recreation, health, environment, heritage, community safety, crime reduction and education.

Normally launched in June, the scheme is being launched early to provide financial support to the community and volunteers groups who are caring for their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cllr Julian Saunders, deputy cabinet member for community at the council, said:

“We make more than £136,000 available every year for local people and organisations to use on what’s important in their community.

This year we’ve decided to launch the scheme now so that local people who are organising efforts on the ground to support the vulnerable people in their communities with the money and support they need.

Each councillor has £2,400 to use on projects and efforts in their area, and they can also come together to provide the money needed by the community.

It has never been more important for us to come together as a community and support those who are less able, vulnerable and more at risk.

We encourage any community and volunteer group to reach out to their local councillor for the financial support they need to help continue their great work and protect their communities.”

For more information on how to apply for a member grant visit: www.swale.gov.uk/member-grants

Swale Borough Council

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Swale Borough Council - Stay Home This Bank Holiday Weekend

People should not be visiting beaches like Minster leas, Shingle bank or Leysdown, or country parks like Oare, Milton Creek, Perry Wood or Barton’s Point this weekend.

We will be working with Kent Police over the long weekend to make sure people are complying with government instructions to not travel unless essential, by checking on car parks and areas of interest.

Last weekend, most people stayed away, but with the bank holidays coming up, we want to remind people that they need to be minimising the time they’re spending out of their home.

If everyone assumes it will be fine to nip to the beach or park for their exercise, it will dramatically increase the chances of coronavirus being transmitted as it is more difficult to avoid coming into contact with people.

The government have said that you should only leave the house for very limited purposes:

• shopping for basic necessities, for example food and medicine, which must be as infrequent as possible.

• one form of exercise a day, for example a run, walk, or cycle - alone or with members of your household.

• any medical need, including to donate blood, avoid or escape risk of injury or harm, or to provide care or to help a vulnerable person.

• travelling for work purposes, but only where you cannot work from home.

These reasons are exceptions - even when doing these activities, you should be minimising time spent outside of the home and ensuring you are 2 metres apart from anyone outside of your household.

We’ve had to send officers out to request camper vans parked up on the Island move on. People might think they’re isolated, but the government guidance is clear that essential travel does not include visits to second homes, camp sites, caravan parks or similar, whether for isolation purposes or holidays. People must remain in their primary residence.

Even isolated places like Shellness or the Shingle Bank should be avoided as there aren’t suitable waste or welfare facilities and people need to move about in order to get essential supplies.

Not taking these steps puts additional pressure on communities and services that are already at risk.

Swale Borough Council

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