Sonare Choir Presents Maestra at St Mary's Church, Upchurch

Following their two successful concerts in the church in September 2021 and April 2022, Sonare Choir will be returning to St Mary's, Upchurch on Saturday the 1st of October at 7:00pm as part of their new 'Maestra' concert tour - 900 years of choral music by women composers.

Sonare Choir is a London - based choral quartet bringing sophisticated and accessible choir concerts to the city and beyond.

Their newest tour brings you an uplifting celebration of women in music, with a programme comprised entirely of female composers.

Although women have been composing alongside men for centuries, their works have often been neglected or even ignored in favour of their male counterparts.

Sonare’s new tour turns the spotlight onto a wealth of exciting, moving and even boundary breaking music. Spanning 900 years, and taking in everything from German mystics, to famous siblings and even cross-pollinators of Indian and western music.

Whether you're a lover of classical music or you're trying it out for the first time, don’t miss out.

Book now to secure your tickets, with a discount for advance bookings and under 35s.

Advance adult tickets are £10 + £0.25 service fee.

Advance tickets for under 35s are £9 + £0.23 service fee.

Or £12 on the door.

Advance tickets available from: www.sonarechoir.com

This will be an unmissable and thrilling programme!

Upchurch Matters

Urgent Road Closure - School Lane, Newington

It will be necessary to close School Lane, Newington from Thursday 1st September 2022 for up to 1 day.

The road will be closed outside Newington Primary School.

The alternative route is via Church Lane, A2 London Road, Oak Lane, Forge Lane, Breach Lane, School Lane and vice versa.

It is planned that the road will be closed between 07:00 hrs and 18:00 hrs.

This is to enable resurfacing and lining works to be carried out by SB Groundworks.

KCC 24hr Contact Centre: 03000 418181

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

Kent County Council - Highways, Transportation & Waste

Cleaner Required for Upchurch Village Hall

There is a vacancy for a cleaner at Upchurch Village Hall.

The work required will be up to 70 hours per month and is generally early mornings prior to the hall opening at 9:00am. Weekend working will also be required based on the hiring schedule.

For more details about the job responsibilities and terms and conditions, please contact David Steward on: 07526 661685 or Email: Upchurchvillagehall@yahoo.com. You can also message via the village hall Facebook page.

David Steward - Chairman

Upchurch Village Hall Management Committee

Swale Borough Council - Young People Offered £500 Towards Environmental Project

Click image to enlarge.

Young people in Swale with a project idea that improves the environment, or encourages others to help the environment, are being offered £500 as part of Swale’s Great Big Green Week activities, funded by the Climate Coalition.

The youth climate competition gives young people aged 11-16 years old the opportunity to get together in small groups to develop a project that benefits the environment and the local community.

Cllr Julian Saunders, chair of the environment committee at the council, said:

“We want to hear from young people about what they think we can do to improve our local environment, so we’re offering them the opportunity to turn their idea into a reality.

“In groups of four to six people, anyone aged 11-16 years old can take part in the competition, with the winning team being awarded £500 to carry out their plan.”

Cllr Tim Valentine, vice chair of the environment committee at the council, said:

“We’ll be looking for how the project improves the environment, what benefits there’ll be for the local community, and how they plan to deliver the project, including where the materials and resources come from and how they’ll market it.

“We encourage applicants to be as creative as possible, using presentation slides, word documents, videos and photos to outline their ideas.

“You have until Thursday, 15th September to enter your idea, with the top entrants going on to present their project to a panel of judges two weeks later on Thursday, 29th September.”

Applicants must submit their ideas by Thursday, 15th September, and be available to present their project on Thursday, 29th September at Swale House in Sittingbourne.

For more information about the competition, including how to apply, visit: https://cee.swale.gov.uk/community/gbgw/competition

Swale Borough Council

Temporary Road Closure - Lower Hartlip Road, Hartlip

It will be necessary to close part of Lower Hartlip Road, Hartlip from Thursday 15th September 2022 at 09:30, with estimated completion by 15th September 2022 at 15:30.

Lower Hartlip Road, Hartlip will be closed between the junctions with Hollow Lane and Munns Lane, to the extent indicated by signs and barriers on site.

The alternative route is Hollow Lane, The Street, Munns Lane and vice versa.

The closure is required for the safety of the public and workforce while overhead network works are undertaken by Openreach.

For information regarding this closure, please contact Openreach on: 0800 023 2023, who will be able to assist with the scope of these works.

KCC 24hr Contact Centre: 03000 418181

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

Kent County Council - Highways, Transportation & Waste

Update on Medway Council’s Local Plan Process

Medway Council has confirmed its plans to re-evaluate sites as part of its Local Plan.

Local authorities are required by the government to set a Local Plan to identify how an area could evolve and provide enough homes, jobs and infrastructure for a growing population.

In April 2022, central government increased Medway's housing target from 26,962 to developing 28,475 new homes by 2040. The new Local Plan must detail how the government target will be reached.

Medway Council’s Cabinet is anticipated to meet on Tuesday, 18th October to discuss preparing consultation papers for a key stage of the Local Plan process which provides for more options - Reg 18. If agreed, Medway Council will be able to look at new sites which could be suitable for housing. The council would conduct a ‘call for sites’ giving landowners opportunities to come forward with sites which may be sustainable for future housing.

The Reg 18 process would give residents and stakeholders, as well as councillors, the opportunity to review and feedback on proposed development sites once again.

The Local Plan process involves a number of different stages which are set out in legislation, including consultations at various stages of the process to provide residents and stakeholders the opportunity to have their say before a draft Local Plan is put together.

If councillors approve the plans to go to the Reg 18 stage, a public consultation could be held in summer 2023. The responses would then be taken into account to draft a new Local Plan. A further consultation would then be held on the draft Local Plan - known as Reg 19 - before it is submitted to the Planning Inspector for independent examination.

The Local Plan is not just about providing new housing, it also considers ensuring sustainable growth, employment opportunities, maintaining parks and historic sites, and providing community services and facilities for people to enjoy. Councils need to achieve all of this while also protecting and enhancing the natural, built and historic environment.

When adopted, Local Plans are legally required to cover how areas are due to be developed over a 15-year period, extending the timeline for Medway’s local plan from 2037 to 2040.

Medway Council