Upchurch Saltmarsh Litter Pick at The Oak Grove

Living River Foundation, supported by Upchurch wedding venue The Oak Grove, has organised a small litter pick along the Saxon Shore Way public footpath and adjacent saltmarsh edge of the Medway/Swale Estuary.

Volunteers should meet at The Oak Grove for a briefing at 12:00 noon on Sunday the 31st of October, wearing appropriate clothing for the weather.

There are only a few spaces available given the terrain and protected birds in the area, so please book early. Children need to be accompanied by a responsible adult guardian.

To book a place and volunteer, visit eventbrite: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/upchurch-saltmarsh-litter-pick-tickets-193099264097

Location:

The Oak Grove

Twinney Wharf

Susans Lane

Upchurch

ME9 7HA

📍Click for map

Read more about Living River Foundation at: www.living-river.org

And Medway Urban Greenspaces Forum at: www.mugsforum.org

Upchurch Matters

New Benches Installed in the Paddock and Recreation Ground

Upchurch Parish Council has installed three new benches in the Paddock and one on the Recreation Ground.

The Council was able to fund the benches following a successful bid to Swale Borough Council's Welcome Back Fund.

Thanks to Councillor Pam Denny for her continued efforts as the representative for the Paddock and Recreation ground.

Councillor Tyrone Ripley
Chairman - Upchurch Parish Council

Nominations Open for the Try Angle Awards

Nominations for this year’s Try Angle Awards are now open.

The Try Angle Awards recognise the outstanding efforts and achievements of young people and groups who really try their best whether at school, work, college, in business or in their wider community across Kent.

Any young person or group of young people aged 11 to 18 or 11 to 25 (with special educational needs) from Kent can be nominated for an award.

All young people nominated receive a certificate, with many going on to be recognised with District Try Angle Awards, before the final Spirit of Try Angle Awards which will take place in March 2022.

There are 8 award categories are:

Arts: recognising personal achievement in the arts, in any form.

Community action: recognising the contribution made to the community or in such initiatives as school councils, youth forums, charities or environmental projects.

Courage: recognising acts of courage displayed in coping bravely with illness or other adversity.

Good friends and young carers: recognising those who spend time being a good friend or carer to another in their family or the local community.

Music: recognising personal achievement in music in any form.

Personal development: recognising special achievement in education, training, or other activities not covered in other categories.

Positive intervention: recognising an intervention where an individual or group has prevented harm, bullying, discrimination or damage.

Sport or outdoor activities: recognising personal achievement in a sport or outdoor activity, demonstrating sportsmanship, fair play and commitment.

Make a Try Angle Award nomination at: www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/young-people/try-angle-awards

The deadline to nominate a young person or group is Friday 5th November 2021.

All those nominated will receive recognition, and many of those go on to be our district category winners. Following judging, the final 24 nominees will be invited to the Spirit of Try Angle Awards county final.

For further information or any queries about Try Angle, Email: tryangle@kent.gov.uk

Kent County Council

Vehicles Broken Into - Newington

Hartlip, Newington & Upchurch Ward

Crime Number: 46/209332/21

Between 13:00 on Saturday the 16th of October and 17:30 on Monday the 18th of October, somebody broke into a Vauxhall Corsa parked in Watling Drive, Newington.

Crime Number: 46/209279/21

Between 15:00 on Saturday the 16th of October and 13:40 on Monday the 18th of October, somebody broke into a Peugeot 307 parked in Merton Drive, Newington. They took a gym membership card.

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

Swale Borough Council Requests Meeting with Southern Water to Discuss Pollution Concerns

The leader of Swale Borough Council has written to Southern Water to request a meeting to discuss concerns about pollution incidents and sewer outflows in the borough.

The letter follows a motion being agreed unanimously by the council earlier this month, demanding Southern Water invest in their local infrastructure to prevent pollution of local waterways and prevent sewerage discharges into local streets.

Cllr Roger Truelove, leader of the council, said:

“As a coastal Borough, Swale relies heavily on tourism and any failures in water management by Southern Water can greatly impact on our local economy.

“Cases of highway and storm flooding are also on the rise and residents in some parts of the borough are living at risk of household flooding because of antiquated wastewater systems.

“We want to meet with Southern Water to discuss the state of their infrastructure in the borough, how it is managed and maintained, and what investment they have planned to prevent pollution incidents.

“We also want to know how they intend to tackle growing highways flooding issues and how they plan to meet increased demand from new housing in line with the local plan.”

The motion was passed at the full council meeting on Wednesday 6th October, and the full agenda is available on the council’s website

Swale Borough Council

Swale Borough Council Gets Gold for Animal Welfare Work

Swale Borough Council’s commitment to animal welfare has again been recognised by the RSPCA, with Gold Pawprint Awards for its stray dogs and contingency planning services.

The stray dog service has picked up its 12th Gold Pawprint in a row from The RSPCA in recognition of its good practice in animal welfare.

The award for contingency planning is the fifth consecutive time the council has picked up the award in recognition of the work done to protect animal welfare in the event of an emergency.

The council also provides information to help animal-based businesses be prepared to look after their animals in the event of an emergency.

Cllr Roger Truelove, leader of the council, who also has responsibility for emergency planning, said:

“We’re delighted to be recognised for all the hard work we do in caring for stray dogs and the welfare of animals during an emergency.

“Despite the demands of the pandemic, our resilience team have continued to work incredibly hard to make sure we have procedures and processes in place to ensure the welfare of animals during an emergency.

“We strongly encourage everyone who keeps or works with animals to think about what they would do with them in the event of an emergency.”

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

“This award recognises the stray dog services willingness to go the extra mile make sure we have high welfare standards for the animals across the borough.

“Obviously, we would rather people didn’t lose their pets, but I find it comforting to know that if a dog is picked up by the team, it will receive amazing care and attention.

“The fact they’ve received the highest accolade from the RSPCA for 12 years in a row shows the high level of service we provide.”

For news on stray dogs found in Swale, follow the council’s Twitter account or the service’s Facebook page

To find out more about how you can prepare to look after your animals during an emergency, visit www.swale.gov.uk/emergency-pet-welfare

To report a stray dog during normal office hours, the public should call 01795 417850 where arrangements will be made for the dog to be collected.

If a dog is found between 5:00pm and 9:00pm on weekday evenings, and between 9:00am and 9:00pm at weekends and on bank holidays, the public should ring the found stray dog line on 07795 237479.

Swale Borough Council