Swale Borough Council Says Thank You

Cheryl Jones, Fundraising Officer from
The Medway Hospital Charity Team
receives toiletry donation.

The response of local people to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has been praised by Swale Borough Council.

Across the borough, people, organisations and businesses have rallied to help families, friends, neighbours and keyworkers during the disruption.

Voluntary and community groups have been supporting the vulnerable to keep them safe, and local businesses have been helping with donations of supplies and services where they are needed.

Cllr Richard Palmer, cabinet member for community at the council, said:

“This pandemic is not over by any stretch, but I think it’s important we recognise the way local people have rallied round to help each other, and our key workers, during a phenomenally difficult time.

Whether it’s been helping an elderly neighbour by picking up their shopping to sharing tips for home schooling with other parents online, there have been countless acts of kindness and generosity that show our community spirit is alive and well.

Voluntary and community groups have responded amazingly and have supported thousands of local people who have been affected by the pandemic – if you’re able to, please donate to our crowdfunding appeal to raise funds for some fantastic local groups that have literally been a lifeline to so many people.

Businesses have donated items to the NHS, charities and community groups, and have helped with services, including - as I read last week - clearing up dumped fridges!

We’ve locked down to keep ourselves and each other safe, and when we’ve been exercising we seem to be keeping to the rules on social distancing - there’s even been a few more “hello’s” and “thank you’s” than usual as we let each other pass safely.

When all this is over, I hope we can carry on in a similar vein, by appreciating what is actually important to us – our health, our family and our friends.”

For more information on how the council is helping support local people affected by the coronavirus visit www.swale.gov.uk/community-response

To find out more, and donate, to the crowdfunding appeal on behalf of local voluntary and community groups, visit www.swale.gov.uk/make-a-difference

Swale Borough Council

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Swale Borough Council - Applications for Park Home Sites in Swale

Swale Borough Council is considering an interim policy to manage planning applications for park home sites across the borough.

Since February 2019, the council have been unable to provide a five year housing supply – meaning not as many houses are being built to meet government targets.

This makes the council vulnerable to planning applications coming in for areas outside the approved local plan, including those for residential park home sites.

At the moment there is no specific policy on park home sites and consequently have nothing to hold new applications to account by.

This policy also give the council the opportunity to widen the housing options especially for the elderly, who make up an increasing part of the borough's population, and for whom there is no specific provision in the current local plan.

Having such a policy in place will also protect the council when it seeks to enforce the current 8-10 month occupancy rules, which are currently vulnerable to appeal.

The council has made it clear that any such sites are highly unlikely to be possible in flood zones or coastal erosion zones, and the number likely to come forward before the next local plan is expected to be very limited, approximately 2-300.

Cabinet Member for Planning Mike Baldock commented:

"Whilst we are in a position that leaves us vulnerable to speculative developments coming forward as a result of the failure of the existing Local Plan to deliver the expected housing levels, we are seeking to turn this vulnerability into a strength.

By arming ourselves with a strong policy we will ensure good quality housing is provided as well as finally start to provide accommodation for our elderly residents - something we will be doing in our Local Plan, but which we are pleased to now be able to deliver two years ahead of schedule.

There is a lot of misconception about residential park home sites.

These aren’t US trailer parks, and people making such ill-informed comments may perhaps be better informed by visiting existing park home sites to see the warm and supportive communities that live there.

This is not accommodation on the cheap - these are good quality homes.”

Cabinet will be discussing the report on Wednesday, 3rd June and the agenda for the meeting is available here

Swale Borough Council

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Upchurch Parish Council - June 2020 Monthly Meeting Agenda

Upchurch Parish Council will be holding the above meeting via Zoom on Thursday 4th June 2020 at 7:30pm.

The Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Flexibility of Local Authority Meetings) Regulations 2020 now gives Local Councils the power to meet remotely during this current crisis.

Virtual meetings are open to members of the public.

Anyone wishing to watch will need to contact the Clerk for the login details, they will also be allowed to raise questions or comments to Councillors during public time.

Wendy Licence - Clerk to the Parish Council
Tel: 01622 739324

Email: clerkupc@outlook.com

Website: www.upchurchpc.kentparishes.gov.uk

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Urgent Road Closure - Bricklands, Newington

It will be necessary to close Bricklands, Newington from Monday 1st June 2020 for up to 2 days.

The road will be closed at the junctions of School Lane and Breach Lane.

The alternative route is via Boxted Lane and Breach Lane.

This is to enable carriageway repairs to be carried out by Kent County Council.

For information regarding this closure please contact Kent County Council on:

03000 418181 (9:00am - 5:00pm)
03000 419191 (5:00pm - 9:00am)

For details of roadworks see: https://one.network

Kent County Council - Highways, Transportation & Waste
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Applications are now Open for the Co-op Membership Local Community Fund - Apply to be a Local Cause

Co-op membership - supporting local causes

The Co-op Local Community Fund supports projects across the UK that its members care about, helping communities to come together, co-operate and have a positive impact on community wellbeing - physically and virtually.

In 2019 the fund delivered £17m to over 4,000 local causes, thanks to its members.

Apply to be a local cause

Applications for the next round of funding beginning 25th October 2020 are now open. Local causes have until midnight on Sunday 28th June 2020 to complete their applications. You can save and return to your application at any time. 

The Co-op will let you know if you have been successful by October 2020.

If you are successful, you will be part of the Local Community Fund for 12 months from 25th October 2020 to 23rd October 2021.

You will receive your share of the funding in 2 payments - one in April 2021 and one in November 2021. New causes are chosen every 12 months.

Apply to be a local cause at: https://causes.coop.co.uk

How the Local Community Fund works

When Co-op members shop, 1% of what they spend on selected Co-op branded products and services goes to support local causes through the Local Community Fund.

Members can choose the local cause they want their 1% to support by logging in online.

If you don’t choose a cause to support, your 1% will be shared out equally between the 3 causes in your community and the Co‑op Foundation charity.

Become a Co-op member

To get involved in the next 'Big Co-op Payout', sign up to become a member for £1 and choose a local cause to support in your community.

You will also get 5% of what you spend on selected Co-op branded products and services back to spend on your next shop.

Remember to show your membership card every time you pay to earn your rewards.

Spend the money you have earned in rewards by showing your card when you pay.

Become a member and choose a cause at: www.coop.co.uk/membership

Upchurch Matters

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Important New Survey - Restarting the NHS - Help Shape the Future

Dear Kent and Medway resident,

The NHS across Kent and Medway has risen to the challenge of responding to the initial impact of the Coronavirus pandemic. Clinicians and thousands of support staff have worked tirelessly to care for the most seriously ill whilst maintaining other essential urgent services.

Together with our partners we are now planning to restart health services which we have had to pause. The virus is still with us and we need to stay alert to keep further spread as low as possible.

We have launched an online survey for patients and families so that we can find out about what you think of changes that we had to put in place such as moving many appointments to telephone, video or online consultations. We also want to find out why some people stayed away from NHS services and about your views on appointments being delayed. This will inform what we do next, and how we reassure the public about the safety of NHS services whilst Coronavirus is still around.

Please complete the survey now

Please respond to the survey here: www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/KMCCGlockdownPE 

It is open until Monday 15th June. Please share it with family and friends so we can get as many views as possible.

It is vital that we learn from patients, local communities, carers and, of course, staff. We will be carrying out further engagement over the summer to help us understand how the pandemic has affected local people and if some of the urgent changes we made have actually been positive changes that we should keep? 

Join us at a public online meeting, Wednesday 3rd June, 2:00pm

Wilf Williams, Accountable Officer, and Cathy Finnis, lay-member for patient and public involvement Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group will be hosting a public online briefing on Wednesday 3rd June from 14:00 to 14:30 to explain about the role of Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group and our plans for public engagement going forward. There will be an opportunity to ask Wilf and Cathy questions. Come and meet the new Clinical Commissioning Group at this live event – all are welcome!

To join the meeting please click on the link: https://bit.ly/PublicMeeting030620

The meeting will be run through Microsoft Teams Live. Some devices may require that you download Microsoft Teams to access the meeting.

If you have any queries about the online event or about the survey please contact: kmccg.engagekm@nhs.net

We look forward to hearing from you.

NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group

Website: www.kentandmedwayccg.nhs.uk

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