SAVE THE DATE: The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Beacons

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee Beacons

Thursday 2nd June 2022

Upchurch Parish Council is looking forward to another village gathering at the Beacon of Light Brazier to celebrate The Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

In 2022, Her Majesty The Queen will become the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, 70 years of service, having acceded to the throne on 6th February 1952.

An extended Platinum Jubilee Weekend bank holiday, from Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June, will provide an opportunity for communities to come together to celebrate this historic milestone. The 4 days of celebrations will include public events and community activities, as well as national moments of reflection on The Queen’s 70 years of service.

Jubilee Beacons will be lit as part of the celebrations throughout the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and UK Overseas Territories. For the first time, beacons will also be lit in each of the capital cities of the Commonwealth countries.

Organiser Pageantmaster Bruno Peek LVO OBE OPR hopes to make it the largest and most dramatic chain of beacons lit during The Queen’s reign the world has ever seen.

Upchurch will play its part when we light our village Beacon at the Recreation Ground in Oak Lane on Thursday 2nd June 2022 at 9:45pm - details to follow.

For more information, visit: www.queensjubileebeacons.com

Upchurch Matters

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Upchurch Village Defibrillators

Upchurch Parish Council is currently seeking a new site to reinstall the second village defibrillator previously located at The Three Sisters Public House in Otterham Quay Lane.

PLEASE NOTE: Until then, there is currently only 1 village defibrillator in use.

Located at: Snaffles Equestrian & Country Store, 2 - 4 The Street, Upchurch ME9 7AJ

A defibrillator is a portable device that checks the heart rhythm and can send an electric shock to the heart to try to restore a normal rhythm. Defibrillators are used to treat sudden cardiac arrest and may save the person's life.

Kent Ambulance response times for critical emergencies can often take longer than the targeted 8 minutes, especially in rural areas. For someone undergoing a heart attack, using an Automatic External Defibrillator within the 8 minute time frame is crucial for their life chances. After 12 minutes, it is often too late.

Medway Ambulance Station and Sittingbourne Ambulance Station are both, according to RAC Route Planner, 16 minutes away (assuming no traffic issues). Clearly, using the defibrillator is important as the emergency services would not be able to attend to someone having a heart attack in time.

In the event of an emergency, you must dial 999. The emergency operator will give you the access code to open the defibrillator cabinet. An ambulance will also be dispatched.

REMEMBER, no training is actually required to use the device. It comes with its own voice instructions which are given as soon as the device is removed from its case and is opened. It will not deliver a shock unless one is needed.

If you notice a problem with the defibrillator or if you have had to use it, please let the Parish Council know as soon as possible so that it can be made ready for future use.

Thanks to the generosity of many village organisations, individuals and through their own fundraising, Upchurch WI raised funds to purchase 2 village defibrillators as part of their Centenary commemorations in 2015.

Upchurch Parish Council would like to thank Bernard and Gail at The Three Sisters on behalf of the village for previously allowing the installation of the second village defibrillator at the pub in 2016.

Upchurch Parish Council

Donate Your Unwanted Sewing Machine and Change a Life

Medway Volunteer Workshop

We are a small not for profit organisation with no staff and no shareholders who receive donated sewing machines from the public.

In turn, we refurbish, restore and PAT test the machines all before being sent to Africa via our sister organisation, Tools with a Mission (TWAM), based in Ipswich.

Donated sewing machines are given mainly to young people so they can get a job, becoming the village dressmaker or tailor.

We are currently experiencing a shortage of donated sewing machines which doesn't help the young people in Africa.

If you have a spare machine you can donate, please contact John Wishart on: 07971 511956, who has very kindly agreed to collect from around the village and bring them to our Medway workshop.

Thank you

Trevor Cox

Medway Volunteer Workshop

Website: www.medwayvolunteerworkshop.co.uk

Emergency Road Closure - Dane Lane, Hartlip

It will be necessary to close Dane Lane, Hartlip from Monday 28th June 2021 for up to 3 days.

The road will be closed between the junctions of Place Lane and Mill Lane.

The alternative route is via Place Lane, The Street and Munns Lane.

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

KCC 24hr Contact Centre: 03000 418181

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

Kent County Council - Highways, Transportation & Waste

Urgent Road Closure - Stickfast Lane, Bobbing

It will be necessary to close Stickfast Lane, Bobbing from Friday 25th June 2021 for up to 5 days (excluding the weekend).

The road will be closed between the junctions of Sheppey Way and Iwade Road.

The alternative route is via Iwade Road, School Lane, Ferry Road and Sheppey Way. 

There will be a gate marshal to allow access.

It is planned that the road will be closed between 07:00 hrs and 17:00 hrs each day.

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

KCC 24hr Contact Centre: 03000 418181

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

Kent County Council - Highways, Transportation & Waste

Medway Council - More than 30 Electric Vehicle Charging Points will be Installed Across Medway this Summer

Medway Council is due to install 34 electric vehicle charging points in three council-owned car parks later this month.

The charging points will be the first to be installed in public car parks in Medway and the council has plans to install more in other car parks in the future.

Electric charging points will be installed in the Rochester multi-storey car park in Cory’s Road, in Station Road car park, Rainham, and in the Commercial Road car park in Strood.

Medway Council has received £85,420 from the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) to install the charging points as part of the council’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions.

Cllr Howard Doe, Deputy Leader of Medway Council, who is leading on Medway’s Climate Change agenda, said:

“We’re committed to helping people who live, work and visit Medway cut their carbon emissions and installing public charging points for electric vehicles supports our aspiration to become carbon neutral in Medway by 2050. There are a number of small changes that we can all make in our daily lives which will have a big difference to our climate including recycling, using public transport and, if you’re thinking of getting a new car, switching to an electric vehicle. I would encourage residents to find out more about the steps we’re taking in the fight against climate change by visiting medway.gov.uk/climatechange”

Cllr Phil Filmer, Medway Council’s Portfolio Holder for Frontline Services, said:

“I am delighted that we will be installing 34 electric vehicle charging points in three of our car parks this summer. With more people using electric cars, and the government planning to phase out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030, I am pleased that we will soon be able to offer public charging facilities to residents, businesses and visitors. We also have exciting plans to expand the number of publicly available electric charging points in Medway over the coming years. I look forward to seeing the works progress.”

Connected Kerb will be carrying out the works which are due to begin in all three car parks at the end of June and are expected to be completed later this year.

Medway Council is also working with Cenex to develop an Ultra Low Emission Vehicle (ULEV) Strategy for Medway.

To find out more about how the council is tackling climate change in Medway, visit: medway.gov.uk/climatechange

Medway Council