Get Together for Parents and Carers of Children with a Special Educational Need at Upchurch Village Hall

Laura and I will be hosting a free get together for parents and carers of children with a Special Educational Need. This can be anything from ASD, AdHd, Add, Dyslexia, Behavioural Needs, Anxiety and so many more.

Laura and I both have children on the ASD spectrum. Laura has a daughter who is 8 years old, and I have 18-year-old twin boys. Between us, we have a wealth of experience and knowledge we would love to share. I am also in education and work daily with children who have additional needs.

We would like to share our tips, strategies and ideas to help other parents and carers with education and home life balance. We all need to let off steam and talk to someone. So we believe this will be a great opportunity to voice concerns or suggest ideas.

Our children and young adults have a challenging journey ahead of them, and it is important that as parents and carers, we have the support we need to help us guide them along the way.

Please join us on Thursday 3rd June at 7:30pm in the Back Hall at Upchurch Village Hall.

For more information, and to confirm your attendance, please contact either:

Nikki: 07870 992216

Laura: 07834 270836

Upchurch Village Hall

The rear of the Crown Public House

The Street

Upchurch

Kent

ME9 7EU

Safe social distancing measures will be in place.

Thank you

Nikki Hansford

Part-time Gardener Vacancy at The BarnYard

The BarnYard, Upchurch is looking for a part-time gardener to help look after their stunning grounds.

The ideal candidate would be local with a keen interest in gardening, maybe with a horticultural background and OK to work a couple of hours a week or maybe more during the summer months.

Duties include keeping our raised flower beds and borders neat and tidy and weed-free.

Lawn and hedge maintenance or heavier duties are not required as we have a groundsman who does this.

If you are interested, please contact Jo or Dave ideally by Email at: office@the-barnyard.com

Thank you

The BarnYard

Oak Lane, Upchurch

Applications Now Open for the Co-op Local Community Fund

Co-op membership - supporting local causes

The Co-op Local Community Fund supports projects across the UK that its members care about, helping communities come together, co-operate and make a difference.

Thanks to its members, the fund delivered an impressive £15,013,187 to over 4,500 local causes in 2020.

Apply to be a local cause

Groups that need funding for a particular project must apply by midnight on 30th May 2021.

The Co-op will let you know if you're successful by October 2021.

If you are successful, you will be part of the Local Community Fund for 12 months from 24th October 2021 to 22nd October 2022.

You will receive your share of the funding in 2 payments - one in April 2022 and one in November 2022.

For information and to how to apply to be a local cause, visit: causes.coop.co.uk

How the Local Community Fund works

For every £1 Co-op members spend on selected Co-op products and services, 2p goes into your membership account and the Co-op gives the same amount to support community organisations and local causes.

When you become a Co-op member, you can choose a local cause to support through your membership. You can change the local cause at any time by logging into your membership account.

If you do not select a cause to support, the Co-op shares the funds you raised equally between the 3 local causes in your community.

The Co-op gives you a new set of causes to choose from every October.

Be a member - make a difference in your community

To get involved, join the Co-op as a member for £1 and earn rewards for you and your community.

To earn and spend your rewards, remember to show your membership card or the Co-op app every time you pay.

Become a Co-op member and choose a local cause at: coop.co.uk/membership

Upchurch Matters

UPDATED: Local Elections | May 2021

The Government delayed some local elections last year because of the Coronavirus pandemic. They will now take place on Thursday 6th May.

Residents living in Hartlip, Newington and Upchurch and Bobbing, Iwade and Lower Halstow wards, who are eligible can vote in 2 elections, both administered by Swale Borough Council.

Voters will choose who represents them at Kent County Council, and the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner.

1. To choose a Kent County Councillor to represent Swale West

Kent County Councillors represent their local area and residents at County Hall and contribute to the development of KCC policies for public services such as education, transport, highways, strategic planning, emergency services, social services, health, public safety, waste disposal as well as policies for the Kent economy and environment.

For more information, visit the Kent County Council website

The candidates are:

2. To choose the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner

The Kent Police and Crime Commissioner is responsible for overseeing how crime is tackled across the county. PCCs help control police budgets and hold the force's chief constable to account for the performance of officers and staff. They ensure your local police force are prioritising what matters to you.

In this election, you can vote for a first and second preference of who you want to win. 

For more information, visit the Kent Police & Crime Commissioner website

The candidates are:

Voting

You need to be on the electoral register to vote in elections or referendums.

The deadline to register to vote in the elections taking place on Thursday 6th May was midnight on Monday 19th April.

If you are not already registered to vote, it is now too late to register to vote in these elections.

Polling Stations will be open between the hours of 7:00am and 10:00pm on Thursday 6th May 2021. For those who choose to vote in person, polling stations will be safe places to vote.

A recent postcard mailing sent out to households from Swale Borough Council included advice about safe voting during the pandemic and encouraged anyone concerned to register for a postal or proxy vote.

For information and how to register to vote in future elections, visit www.swale.gov.uk/elections

Whichever way you vote, make your vote count on Thursday 6th May!

Upchurch Matters

Allotment Store Broken Into and Vandalised - Newington

Hartlip, Newington & Upchurch Ward

Crime Number: 46/72873/21

Between Thursday the 29th and Friday the 30th of April, a store on the allotments in Orchard Drive, Newington was broken into and vandalised by unknown persons. However, nothing appears to have been stolen.

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

No Mow May - Let it Grow!

It’s time to put away the lawnmowers and the strimmers and sit back, relax and tune in to the gentle hum of the bees and hoverflies.

No Mow May is a campaign by the charity Plantlife to let your lawn grow and provide a carpet of flowers for our pollinators to feed on.

It doesn’t ask you to do much.

In fact, it asks you to not do anything at all!

Just lock up your lawnmower on May the 1st and let the wildflowers in your lawn bloom, providing a feast of nectar for our hungry pollinators.

At the end of the month, on the Bank Holiday Weekend, join in with our nationwide Every Flower Counts survey to discover how many bees the UK’s lawns can feed.

Not only will you receive your very own ‘nectar score’ (which will tell you how many bees your lawn can feed), you’ll help Plantlife learn more about the health of the nations’ wildflowers.

If you’re a council, join in by leaving parks and road verges to go wild.

Plantlife's Road Verge Campaign provides award-winning guidance on how to mow less often and later in the year instead.

And the fun doesn’t stop for farmers. A three-acre meadow can be home to 9 million flowers producing enough nectar to support half a million bees every day. Plantlife is working hard to save, create and restore wildflower meadows through their meadow making projects and network of nature reserves.

And if you’re really keen and want to rewild all summer, try #LetItBloomJune and #KneeHighJuly

When it comes to providing vital nectar and pollen for bees, butterflies and other insects, every flower counts, and your lawn can help provide that feast.

The more wildflowers you have in your lawn the more nectar will be produced. If you are taking part in #NoMowMay or haven’t mown at all this year, you’re likely to have many more wildflowers and lots more nectar.

Why not give it a go this May to see what colourful flowers appear and the butterflies, beetles and bees that they attract?

Even leaving a small patch of your lawn uncut will make a big difference.

Join legions of gardeners and say NO to the mow this May!

Find out more by signing up today at >> www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/no-mow-may

Upchurch Matters