Upchurch River Valley Golf Course is COVID-19 Compliant

Jenny Giles - Upchurch River Valley Golf Course

Telephone: 01634 360626

Website: www.rivervalleygolf.co.uk

Space

Medway Council - Nominate Stay at Home Stars

Medway Council is encouraging residents to nominate Stay at Home stars - young people who have been helping others during the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic.

To celebrate the contributions, achievements and dedication of young people who are helping their families and local communities during the coronavirus pandemic, the council’s Medway Youth Service and Medway Youth Council have launched Stay at Home stars. Once nominations are received the stars are praised for their work on social media, @Medway_Youth on Twitter and Medway Youth Council on Facebook.

Nominations are open for young people aged eight to 19, and up to 25 for young people with additional needs.

So far 30 young people have been celebrated for the fantastic things they are doing to support others in their local communities.

The very first Stay at Home star, announced last month, was Nathan Dickin, who dedicated between 14 to 20 hours a week to help community churches get online so they could continue to serve their parishioners. Nathan even created a YouTube channel for residents to access. Tili-Ane Evans was the second Stay at Home star. She had been cooking and baking meals, with her mum, to donate to a local charity to give to those in need during lockdown.

Cllr Josie Iles, Medway Council’s Lead Member for Children’s Services, said:

“Despite the challenges we are all currently facing we know that many of our young people are continuing to do their best to help others. It is incredibly important that we recognise everything that they are doing to help their local communities. I would encourage residents to nominate a special young person so that we can celebrate their work.”

To nominate a young person visit: www.medway.gov.uk/stars

Medway Council

Space

Latest POLICE.UK Crime Data for the Area - May 2020

Hartlip, Newington and Upchurch

Here is a brief summary of crime information for the past 2 months:

54 crimes are shown on the map in May 2020 including:

15 Anti-social Behaviour

1 Burglary

2 Criminal Damage and Arson

3 Other Theft

6 Public Order

4 Shoplifting

4 Vehicle Crime

19 Violence and Sexual Offences

51 crimes were shown on the map in April 2020.

Not all crime that occurs is shown on the map.

Please visit: www.police.uk for more information including outcomes for these crimes and contact information for your local policing team.

Lower Halstow and Iwade

Here is a brief summary of crime information for the past 2 months:

43 crimes are shown on the map in May 2020 including:

25 Anti-social Behaviour

5 Criminal Damage and Arson

1 Other Theft

4 Public Order

1 Shoplifting

1 Vehicle Crime

4 Violence and Sexual Offences

2 Other Crime

56 crimes were shown on the map in April 2020.

Not all crime that occurs is shown on the map.

Please visit: www.police.uk for more information including outcomes for these crimes and contact information for your local policing team.

Upchurch Matters

Space

Thank You from Foodbank Co-ordinator Gill Gay and Swale Foodbank

Two of our very generous donators Ellie and Lesley
who came along with their dad/grandad Don.

Hi Everyone,

Thank you to all who gave so generously to Swale Foodbank on Wednesday 8th July.

Our boot was full to the brim! Thanks to Louis' parents for all the rice pudding, drinks and sweets from their neighbours.

While you all give so generously, we will gratefully keep taking it to the Foodbank warehouse. 

Thank you ♥️

Bless you all - Gill & Ron Gay

Gill Gay - Foodbank Co-ordinator
Email: gilliangay99@yahoo.co.uk

Space

The Queen’s Silver Jubilee Celebrations in Upchurch, June 1977 by David Wood

The Queen’s Silver Jubilee of June 1977 became one of the biggest village events of the 1970s in a highly organised succession of varied activities lasting for three days.

An elected committee to set up and organise different activities included chairman Bryan Veale, secretary Jenny Smith, treasurer Ian Daniel and publicity officer Bob Goodson. Other committee members were Reverend Keith Chare, Marj Lacy, Helen Osborne, Doris Fletcher, Janice Lacy, Cecil Maxted, Yvonne Paulley and Alec New.

The silver jubilee celebrations began on Saturday June 4th 1977 with street parties for children in different parts of the village. These were held in Rich Boakes’s orchard in Chaffes Lane where pensioners were also invited, Bishop Lane, Crosier Court, Church Farm Road and The Poles. Tables and chairs were placed on the road while Union Jack flags and red, white and blue bunting hung. Children were entertained with music, games and Punch and Judy in a lively afternoon of fun.

After the street parties a barbecue and disco took place on The Paddock and a barn dance in the village hall to end an action packed first day of celebrations.

On Sunday 5th June Reverend Keith Chare held a morning thanksgiving service in the church. Shortly before the service the village scouts and guides held a parade and marched from the recreation ground to the church and attended the thanksgiving service. During the evening Upchurch Choral Society performed a concert in the church.

A children’s pageant in the form of a procession started from Holywell School in Forge Lane and passed through The Street and Oak Lane as far as the old people’s bungalows then back to The Paddock. Holywell School organised the pageant and pupils impersonating the royal family led the procession. Nicola Daniel played the Queen, Simon Antwiss Prince Philip, Sarah Phillips the Queen Mother and Ella Reader Princes Margaret. The pageant had several themes such as ‘Life in the Past Twenty Five Years’, ‘Fashion’, ‘Sports’ and ‘Technological Achievements’. Decorated floats also participated such as ‘Concorde’ by John Gower and ‘North Sea Oil’ Rig by Martin Gilbert.

A fete began in The Paddock on Monday afternoon with competitions for knobbly knees, the hairiest chest and the most glamorous granny. An old people’s fancy dress contest and a tug of war competition also took place. Meanwhile, stalls represented by different village clubs and organisations sold a variety of goods.

Thank you to Jill and Terry Lewis for their photographs of the
Queen's Silver Jubilee Celebrations at Crosier Court.
The Commemorative Plaque in Oak Lane reads:
THIS OAK TREE WAS PLANTED BY THE PARISH COUNCIL TO COMMEMORATE
THE SIVER JUBILEE OF H.M. QUEEN ELIZABETH II JUNE 1977

Silver Jubilee Crown Coins made by the Royal Mint and certificates to commemorate the occasion were presented to all children in the village born between September 1st 1965 and June 7th 1977. Jubilee committee chairman Bryan Veale did the presentation.

Fund raising events such as a Grand Draw were held to raise money for the cost of the Crown Coins and to improve aspects of the village. A total of £425 was raised then the parish council added a further £75. A sum of £100 was given to the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Fund and the remainder to the parish council to decide how to use the money after a public meeting took place in the old Holywell School on July 4th.

The parish council decided to plant an oak tree with an accompanying commemorative plaque on the green (known to some Upchurch residents as Grannies Green) near Bishop Lane. A second tree was later planted when the original appeared to die, but it recovered leaving two trees on the site.

Overall, the Queen’s Silver Jubilee celebrations in Upchurch were highly successful and well organised by the Silver Jubilee Committee who were widely praised and who presided over a memorable three days of activities in the village.

David Wood

About David

David Wood was born, raised and still lives in Upchurch today. He is able to write from personal experience about village life and the changes that have taken place over the years, making ‘Memories of Upchurch’ a very readable and detailed historical study of the village.

David's book is available from David at david3702001@yahoo.co.uk or from us here at Upchurch Matters. Price £12 + postage and packing.

Update on the North Kent Dermatology Service

NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) suspended DMC Healthcare’s contract to provide dermatology services in Medway, Swale, Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley on 19th June 2020. This decision was taken to ensure patient safety after the CCG identified concerns about the provider’s ability to meet NHS standard contract requirements.

Dermatology is the medical term for the treatment or management of skin conditions which can include rashes, lesions, lumps on the skin, changes to moles and skin cancer.

Wilf Williams, Accountable Officerat NHS Kent and Medway CCG, said:

“Since we took the decision to suspend DMC Healthcare’s contract for dermatology services, we have been working hard to put alternative provision in place to best meet patient needs.

There are 1,855 patients who need procedures and these patients are being contacted and booked into clinics which will begin on Friday 10th July. The 18 Week Support team, which specialises in seeing a high volume of patients in a short space of time, will be running the clinics with support from West Kent Dermatology Service.

West Kent Dermatology Service will also see new routine patients once the priority patients have been treated. The service is already receiving referrals and has the capacity to see more than 500 new patients per week. Services will be led by expert consultant dermatologists with a team of more than 20 consultants available to deliver services.

Patients with newly diagnosed cancer and inflammatory skin disease will be seen and linked to other specialist services as required. This will include skin cancer support services provided at Queen Victoria Hospital and oncology services provided by Maidstone Hospital. Multidisciplinary clinics - which bring a range of clinicians from different specialities together - have already begun to ensure these patients are seen as quickly as possible.

Both West Kent Dermatology Service and the temporary service being delivered in North Kent are fully supported by parent provider Sussex Community Dermatology Service (SCDS). SCDS provides dermatology services across Sussex, Surrey and Kent with a proven track record of service delivery for more than 10 years, working in acute hospital trust and community locations.

Although we are still in the process of clinically triaging and validating data provided by DMC Healthcare, we know there is a large waiting list of patients who need to be assessed so we are planning provision for them. Once we have clearer data, we will put plans in place to treat patients as quickly as possible. It has been important to prioritise the high risk patients which is what we have been concentrating on.”

Clinics will take place at Rainham Healthy Living Centre, High St, Rainham and Fleet Health Campus, Vale Rd, Northfleet.

The CCG has asked clinicians who see patients that have been waiting a long time to consider whether they believe any delays to their treatment may have caused harm.

As the situation develops, www.bit.ly/NorthKentDerm will be kept updated so please check for the latest information.

NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group

Space