The Friends' Fête and the Council's greed

Oh look, here's another good thing that Our Council seems to be hell-bent on stamping out. Like the recent bus rally (but much more worthy) it doesn't take many brain cells to figure out that the hospital fête is a good thing that deserves encouragement and support, not fleecing. CCC are happy to fritter £17,000 of our money on new ceremonial robes for the Lord Mayor (which will benefit how many people, and how?) but insist on chiselling £400 from the Friends of QVMH (which benefits how many people, and how?).

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Street advert grounded by red tape

How much does it cost to put up a banner? Council bean-counters wanted £400 from hospital fundraisers to erect one over the High Street advertising their annual summer fete next Saturday. Organisers were stunned to be told of the cost - up from £200 last year and £120 the year before - and decided to scrap the aerial advertising and use the money to help patients instead. But Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital League of Friends spokeswoman Sandy Winkworth said it was a bitter blow to the hard-working team of volunteers.

"It is a disappointment. We just can't justify that sort of cost, particularly as we'd have to pay to alter the banner to this year's date as Well. Every penny We raise goes towards the hospital and the patients and keeping it as a service for Herne Bay. It's a shame that we can't get more support from the council."

The shock estimate came just weeks after bureaucrats tried to charge volunteer organisers of the Herne Bay Bus Rally £850 in compensation for the car parking spaces they would take up. After negotiation, they agreed to accept £200 instead. Mrs Winkworth added:

"It does seem unfair when all these events are organised by volunteers for charity. If the cost had increased by 10 or 20 per cent on last year we would probably have paid it. But when we raise between £6,000 and £7,000 it is a big percentage of the fundraising and it seems a waste. We have to try and get posters around town instead but people just don't look at them. The sad thing is that the banner really worked by reminding people of the fete and the date."

Council spokesman Steve James said the cost included a £50 admin charge. He said:

"The charge is applied by our contractors, Serco, and covers their costs. But they expect to have a new piece of machinery next month and once they have that it will reduce the admin and labour costs of putting up a banner. Those savings will be passed on so we hope next year the cost will be lower."

The fete, from 2pm on Saturday, September 3, will include cake stalls, children's rides, clairvoyants and a raffle. Donations are welcome, and for more information call 01227 367894 or 01227 452070.

HB Times 25th Aug 2011 l.crudgington@KRNmedia.co.uk

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Friends' fete too costly to advertise

The League of Friends to The Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital Herne Bay says it has become too expensive to advertise its annual fete on September 3 with a banner across the High Street. In the past the charity has used it to publicise the event but says the cost of putting up the banner has been doubled by the city council's contractor. But members are keen to promote the fete which is traditionally their biggest fundraiser of the year. Committee member Sandy Winkworth said:

"We felt the cost of the banner at more than £400 was now just too high and not a good use of our funds."

Council spokesman Steve James said:

"Unfortunately our contractor Serco has had to pass on the full cost of erecting banners like these, but it is soon to acquire a cherry picker which it says will make it much cheaper in the future. Sadly it will probably arrive too late for the Friends."

The fete opens at 2pm and there will be about 40 stalls and sideshows including bric-a-brac, plants, jigsaws, clairvoyants, cake stalls, tombola, children's rides, barbecue and refreshments. There will also be two raffles and a subscription stall encouraging new life members for £10. Mrs Winkworth said:

"All money raised goes towards the hospital. Over the past few months we have spent about £35,000. The corridors have been redecorated, a new digital TV has been put in the outpatients waiting area, new blinds for the day centre, various pieces of equipment and quite a bit of tidying work on parts of the gardens. The work goes on to keep our hospital in good shape. If anyone has anything that they would like to donate to the fete, we are happy to collect almost anything except clothes. Please call Rina on 01227 367894 or Liz on 01227 452070. Alternatively, items can be delivered to our little shop in the hospital."

HB Gazette 25th Aug 2011

Kitewood Hillborough Extension

Property developer Kitewood has unveiled plans to develop a new primary school, shopping centre and up to 1,375 homes on the outskirts of Herne Bay, on land between Hillborough and the Altira Business Park in Broomfield. This idea first surfaced in July 2010, when everyone was up in arms about the increasing risk of death on Blacksole Bridge. Click here to read up on the back-story, and find out who the bad guys are.

The plans for the proposed development will go on show during a public exhibition at Reculver Primary School

• between 12 noon and 8pm on Wednesday, August 31, and
• between 10am and 4pm on Saturday, September 3.

Kitewood have also set up a website to keep people updated on the plans, and say they intend to compile reports on the feedback and use them if proposals need re-shaping. Visit: www.hillboroughextension.com

The 190 acre, £240m scheme is planned in three phases.

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Phase 1

• Would use the land which lies to south of the railway line and north of the Thanet Way, all of which is controlled by Kitewood.  The land adjoins Altira Business Park at Bogshole Lane, and is crossed by the un-made Maystreet Road which goes over the railway line at Maystreet Bridge.
• Phase 1 land covers 25.5 hectares (63.3 acres):
  • 6 hectares (15 acres) of the land for employment use as an extension to Altira Business Park, providing 300 new jobs.
  • 12.5 hectares (31 acres) for 375 houses.
  • 7 hectares (17.3 acres) for landscaping and public open space.
• Will include a footbridge over the Blacksole Bridge railway crossing, and a new link road between Altira Business Park and Sweechbridge Road which will enable access to the Thanet Way at both the Margate Road and the Heart in Hand Road junctions.
• Planning application in early 2012 - if it's successful, work could begin as early as the end of 2012, and finish in 2016.
• Kitewood say: "It will cost in the order of £60 million - an enormous vote of confidence in Herne Bay".

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Phase 2

• Would use land which lies to the north of the railway line and extends to the existing commercial and residential areas of Hillborough, all of which is controlled by Kitewood.
• Phase 2 land covers 27.4 hectares (67.7 acres):
  • 4 hectares (10 acres) of the highest area of land to the west of the site would be used for a new primary school (to be donated to CCC) and a shopping centre.
  • 16 hectares (39.5 acres) for up to 500 houses.
  • 7.4 hectares (18.3 acres) for wildlife habitats and parkland.
• Realignment of Sweechbridge Road to the north of the railway to improve the existing dangerous layout.
• Preservation of the historical pedestrian and cycle links via Maystreet Bridge.
• Design of a traffic system to discourage non-local traffic from passing through Hillborough.
• Kitewood anticipate Phase 2 happening between 2016 and 2026.

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Phase 3

• Would use land lying to the west of phase two and north of the railway line.
• Development of this land would require an additional bridge over the railway because the Maystreet and Sweechbridge Bridges wouldn't be sufficient.
• Approximately 16 hectares (39.5 acres) could be developed to provide an additional 500 houses if the need exists.
• 7.7 hectares (19 acres) would form an extension to the central park on the higher ground in the middle of the scheme.
• The two wooded areas on the northern part of the site would be retained for landscaping and wildlife purposes.
• The central part of this land would be landscaped and planted with trees.
• Pedestrian and cycle links and possibly a bus link would also be provided to Osborn Gardens, Churchill Avenue and Highfield Avenue, enabling residents of Beltinge to access the site whilst preventing traffic from entering Beltinge.
• It is not anticipated that Phase 3 would start before 2026.

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If you have any comments on this proposal, you can add them below, or you can visit www.hillboroughextension.com, or contact your councillors or MP.

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Visit www.SaveHillborough.info for more

How to build a windfarm

Here's an excellent little piece from the BBC, explaining how windfarms happen - it's not nearly as easy as you might think. It's worth zooming in on The Workers in the first picture, just to get a clear idea of just how BIG these turbines are... Click to see more.

Herne Bay Beach Hut Day

Herne Bay famous faces John Altman and Nicki Chapman had a stiff challenge on their hands as guest judges at the annual beach hut competition. A fiercely contested event saw owners get right into the festival spirit with an array of colourful designs and themes for their huts.

Former EastEnders star John and TV personality Nicki were joined by Jenny and David Cross from the Friends of the Herne Bay Museum in the judging as the number of entries exceeded expectations. Organiser Andrew Cook was overwhelmed with the response:

“The sun came out to shine and many hut owners frantically dressed theirs in time for judging. Competition was fierce and the quality was higher than ever before, some owners came from as far away as Yorkshire to enter. We had to give out some additional prizes to make the judges’ lives a bit easier. Jill Bell eventually took the honours for best dressed hut with her Mrs Sweeney Todd theme. It was great to have both Nicki and John there as they are firm believers of what Herne Bay has to offer and the town’s future potential.”

Kentish Gazette 16th Aug 2011

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Click here for the Beach Hut Day photo gallery

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Herne Bay Carnival

Herne Bay was awash with colour on Saturday as crowds turned out in force for this year’s carnival. The morning’s wet weather cleared in plenty of time for young and old to line the route and enjoy the annual parade from Lane End, along Western Esplanade through Central Parade, the town centre and back to Sea Street.

Around 60 floats, including 11 visiting carnival courts, brought noise and colour to the sea front, lead by music from the Herne Bay Sea Cadets band.

Among them were best in carnival, The Red Wheelies from Canterbury’s MS Therapy Centre. The ladies, famed for their formation dances on mobility scooters, dressed up as knights of the realm in full battle armour. Other entrants included members of the town’s football club and roller hockey clubs, as well as Greenhill Gymnastics Club and the Hasland Dance Academy.

The team from domestic carers Bluebird Care won the Carol Bosworth prize for creativity. In the evening, the Kings Hall hosted the traditional post parade party, with music from band Kelly’s Hero’s.

HB Times 15th Aug 2011

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Click to see the Carnival photo gallery

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Delicatessen plundered for scrap twice in one week

Metal thieves are running rampant through Herne Bay and not even your kitchen equipment is safe, according to one trader. Delicatessen boss Steve Dansey said his fridge has been plundered for parts - not once but twice in recent weeks. He said:

"My fridge was delivered on a Monday. On Tuesday when we went to assemble it we saw all the aluminium brackets had been stolen. It was assembled on Wednesday and by Friday they'd clipped the copper pipes off the back, even though it was running!"

On Tuesday he saw a teenager sifting through items left for a second-hand shop and taking scrap metal away on his bike. Mr Dansey, who runs Butterfly Meadow in the High Street, added:

"He had a black bag on his bike for the scrap. It seemed very Well organised. He wheeled his bike to the end of the road and just Waited to be picked up."

Other shopkeepers say they have spotted thieves stealing metal strips from steps, and in January iron drain grids were stolen for their scrap metal value, leaving holes in the road. Police are working to combat the problem by visiting about 50 breakers yards and scrap metal dealers across the county. Chief Superintendent Steve Corbishley, Kent Police's head of partnership and communities, said:

"Metal theft is a national problem and one of the UK's fastest-growing crimes, and it's having an impact on communities in Kent. We've had church roofs and school buildings targeted, telephone cable and manhole covers stolen by thieves recently. Around 15 million tonnes of metal is recovered nationally each year, with a sale value of £13 billion, which gives an illustration of the scale of this criminality, due to the rising value of commodities like copper. We are visiting scrap metal dealers, and will continue to work on days of action to raise awareness and to target suspects when we have information they are involved in crime."

ed.targett@KRNmedia.co.uk

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Butterfly Meadow Farm's shop is called High Street Heaven

at 80 High Street,  Herne Bay, Kent CT6 5LE

Bus rally threatened by Council

Our Council demanded £850 compensation for 'lost revenue' - and the red tape almost drove this Sunday’s Herne Bay bus rally off the road.

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Organisers admitted this week they were considering cancelling the annual event when Canterbury City Council demanded payment for unused parking spaces. Julian Bowden, who took over running the rally last year with Nigel Coupe, said:

"The city council's events team and town co-ordinator Chris West have been brilliant, and know how many visitors the rally brings to Herne Bay. But then the council’s parking services department stepped in and dropped a bombshell by demanding £850 compensation for lost revenue from the spaces the buses use in William Street car park. It was virtually the same amount We raised for our chosen charity, Demelza children’s hospices, last year. We felt it was a little excessive."

The volunteer organisers were also hit with a bill for £40 to cover administration charges. But a deal was struck at the 11th hour over the compensation demand. Mr Bowden, said:

"We had a very sensible meeting and reached a compromise of £200. Luckily we carried out a traffic management survey the weekend before which showed only 53 spaces were used on the Sunday. After our buses and coaches have taken up 216 spaces there will be 48 spaces left. We thought that was nearly adequate."

However, he admits his survey coincided "unknown to us" with the Whitstable Oyster Festival, which kept Herne Bay parking artificially low. The team hope to cover the costs with extra advertising in the programme. Council spokesman Rob Davies said:

"The original charge was based on the loss of the whole car park to the event. However, we discussed the situation with the organisers and agreed on a lower fee. We hope the event is a great success."

This year Bay bus driver Chris Ingram has rejoined the organising team after a year off. Organisers are expecting 40 buses, ranging from a 1937 pre-war single-decker East Kent coach to an open-top former Maidstone and District bus. The rally runs from 10am to 5pm on Sunday; there will be a free shuttle service from the station and free bus trips around town.

John.Nurden@KRNmedia.co.uk

The Pier Pavilion... not to be missed ;-)

Well, dear reader, here's an interesting little something... a report on our dainty little town, as viewed through the eyes of a visitor from afar.

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RE: Herne Bay Pier Pavilion

Dear Sir/Madam,

We recently visited Herne Bay for the first time and on the whole enjoyed our day in the town. However, we were both rather horrified and aghast at the sight of the 1976 Pier Pavilion.

After recovering from our disbelief we decided that while a building so municipal, imposing and downright ugly may have made sense on an industrial estate on the outskirts of Milton Keynes, as the focal point of a 'Victorian' coastal resort it was akin to seeing the Queen making a public appearance with chocolate spread smeared on her cheek.

We understand it comes from a period of history when architects and town planners were realising that they could make or save a lot of money by dispensing with beauty, care, aesthetics and consideration and that function very much took priority over form, but I have never seen such an ugly building having such an inappropriate impact on its surroundings: Nothing short of traumatic.

No passing of time, changing of fashion or understanding of irony could ever make the Pier Pavilion 'fit' in its present surroundings.

One or two Monty Python sketches come to mind, luckily never actually put into practice, but the most pertinent would have to be the famous image of the oversized, naked foot descending and crushing a collection of otherwise harmonious and innocent 'bystanders' accompanied by the sound of someone blowing a raspberry.

PLEASE dismantle the Pier Pavilion if only as a kindness and a lifeline to the rest of the seafront and the businesses that depend on it, and we, and others, may consider visiting Herne Bay again.

We feel sure it could be removed even more quickly and 'carelessly' than it was put there 35 years ago. Please do let me know if there are any plans to this effect.

Yours sincerely,

JH

P.S. This photo appears on a website of shocking, humorous and mind-boggling pictures...

Perhaps it has been a major tourist attraction in some ironic way. Maybe the people of Herne Bay have grown to love it. Or does it serve to keep the nasty tourists away. Perhaps roller hockey is more popular than I first thought?!

Other than the Pier Pavilion which I have to admit is a bit of a talking point, I should say that we did have a lovely day and would definitely choose Herne Bay over Whitstable on most counts on our next escapade from London.

Message in a Bottle at Reculver

Local litter action group 'Shore' is a load of Rubbish! is still going strong, and their project for 2011 is Message in a Bottle.

With the help of two local schools (Westmeads Whitstable and St Stephens Canterbury) they are constructing a full-sized beach hut from recycled materials, including 2 litre plastic bottles filled with beachcombed litter and facts about marine litter. Message in a Bottle is now on at:

Reculver Visitor Centre open Thursday-Monday 11am-5pm till 29th August, on display are:

• a Bottle Beach Hut, made of 2 litre bottles filled with beach litter,
• a bottle top deckchair made up of 560 bottle tops threaded onto 40 metres of cord, and
• a Mermaid made from crisp packets, balloon litter and recycled items!
• More details below.

Click it to big it.

‘Message in a Bottle’ Dates 2011

Herne Bay Band Stand/Sea Front
August, location TBC

Reculver Visitor Centre
1st-29th August
11-5 Thursday-Monday

Horsebridge Centre Whitstable
8th-18th September
9-6 Monday-Saturday 10-6 Sunday

For more information, and great pictures of work in progress and previous exhibits, visit

shoreisaloadofrubbish.blogspot.com

Drama on the foreshore

All sorts of noise and drama down by the Coastwatch Lookout this morning (31st July). It appears that a lady had fallen off her bike and injured her back or neck. This was right outside the Lookout, where the black and yellow barrier crosses the prom. The barrier was vertical by the time I got there, but it might have been moved by the ambulance crew who were already in attendance.

The Kent Air Ambulance arrived at about 8:30am and landed (parked? settled?) on the promenade just east of the Lookout. An impressively neat piece of parking it was, too - better than a lot of people can manage in their cars.

As it turned out, the injured lady cyclist (Dutch or Belgian?) was whisked away in the road ambulance, and the air ambulance returned to base. It looked like a well-executed rescue: congratulations to all involved, and hopefully a speedy recovery for the injured lady. To find out more about the Kent Air Ambulance, and make a welcome, much-needed and well-deserved donation, just click the logo:

Jul 2011: most read

1. Job losses at Manston Airport
2. Waitrose gets 20-year lease in Canterbury
3. HBiB Blog
4. Motionless
5. Big Apple pie in the sky
6. Night Flights: too hot to handle?
7. Manston unmonitored
8. URGENT: Beach hut threat
9. Trickle of funding for Manston Parkway
10. Ban on fishing in Memorial Park pond

Former jet-setter finds the good life on the farm

The way Steve Dansey tells it; one minute he was a milkman, the next minute head of IT security at a major global corporation. Now he's running a farm in Whitstable and making sausages that he sells in his delicatessen on Herne Bay high street. It's a career trajectory so unlikely it makes you do a double-take.

The 52-year-old makes the move from dropping off bottles of semi-skimmed to scanning the files of international banks on the hunt for fraud sound disarmingly simple. And the sausages? Just a return to his roots as a butcher's boy and son of a meat salesman… He told Ed Targett how he ended up with thousands of pear trees, a herd of Badger Face Sheep and an injunction from Canterbury City Council...

From Essex milkman to global techie: how did that come about? I was working as milkman for Unigate in my twenties when they decided to select some internal staff for training on new IT systems they were rolling out. I got picked for the team in what was meant to be a four month project but ended up being 18 months.

So you stayed on? Actually the project wrapped up and when it finished there were no milkman jobs left going! I was out of work, but a bit handy at computers by then, so I spotted a systems administrator position available in Ramsgate, applied and somehow managed to get it.

Did you study computer engineering at university? No, I don't have a degree. I actually left school at 16 and went to work for my grandfather who had a small business in Essex, import-export of canned goods. I did all sorts of bits and bobs after that; working as a butcher's boy, doing markets and working for Tesco.

Computer security isn't something you typically just pick up. But you ended up heading a global IT team? After entering the IT world, I set about teaching myself more programmes. IT is inherently logical and I genuinely think it's something anyone could teach themselves. You just need a certain amount of dedication and to spend a lot of time glued to a screen.

It sounds like you enjoyed it. I did, a lot. Just to be clear though I didn't write software: the security systems I created were procedures documentation and structures for companies. In the mid-1990s I joined a company, now called Actimise, which specialises in fraud detection. It was a typical start-up with around 50 people and a nice place to be, as we were still working with the founders. I ended up running their IT security department, had offices in nine European countries and used to fly out to the US on Tuesdays and back on Fridays. It was a bit a break-neck paced life.

What were you doing exactly? Mostly, writing programmes that would scan bank files to detect fraud. There are so many kinds of financial fraud: cheque kiting, front running… you'd find account statements for a single day that were 40 pages long! We'd scan laterally and poke about searching for wrong-doing, of which there was plenty.

So how did you end up in a deli in Herne Bay? We were bought out in 2006 by a US conglomerate, which restructured and I lost my job. I'd moved to Whitstable in 1987 and along with my wife Sue, who's always had very green fingers, bought some land to set up a small farm. It was an investment for us -that we could afford at the time -and always a dream we'd had. And after I lost my job, it was the only thing we had and we simply had to make it work as a business.

That must have been tough. Try telling a bank you want to renegotiate your mortgage on some land when you've got no income coming in! We had and still do have many sleepless nights.

How's it going now? Well, we have a farm across two sites, in Whitstable and Dargate, called Butterfly Meadow. My wife had started making our own fruit snacks for sale at farmer's markets – well before I lost my job – and we aimed to expand on that; the "fruit purist" snacks we make were recognised at the Taste of Kent awards which was gratifying.

What do you grow, or rear? A bit of everything: We have goats, chickens, Aberdeen Angus cattle, a herd of Badger Face Sheep, 4,000 pear trees, 800 plum trees. And getting back to my roots as a butcher's lad we make our own sausages; pork, chicken, beef… all kinds of sausages, all hand-made.

So you employ a team of dedicated sausage makers? Myself, my wife and my daughter, no less. I clearly owe them a lot!

Were there many bureaucratic hurdles to overcome in setting up a working farm? Where to start? I've actually just won a five-year battle with Canterbury City Council to keep the place going which has cost me more than £11,000 in legal fees. They had an injunction taken out against me that has just ended. The whole thing ended up in mediation, which was amazingly efficient. But five years of struggle just to try and set up a local business? Incomprehensible.

What was the problem exactly? Amongst many issues, they wouldn't accept that my land in Dargate and Whitstable was one farm, despite DEFRA having recognised it as one and it sharing the same national code. They wanted me to have planning permission for some six-by-four moveable chicken hutches I'd put up. Solicitors at the National Farmers Union laughed their socks off that I'd been made to demolish some hutches of that size; you shouldn't need planning permission for small, moveable hutches.

Has that been resolved? Yes, like I said, through mediation. But not before I found myself owing the shirt off my back in solicitors fees! Still, life goes on and we're born survivors.

And the deli certainly seems full of local goodies. What have you got? Fudge from Hempstead Valley; honey from Blean; pickles from Dover; cheese from Dargate; oils from Quex; apple juice from Broomfield; ice cream from Ashford, you name it!

What was you first car? An Austen A35 that cost me 10 bob!

First record? A reggae version of Love of the common people.

And… have you ever seen a ghost? Ummm. Yes, actually. Well, more an apparition. It was on Kent Common in Hayes… It's hard to describe frankly; not a human form but something that just materialised, drifted this way and that and then faded away again. Very odd.

HB Times 22nd Jul 2011

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Butterfly Meadow Farm's shop is called High Street Heaven

at 80 High Street,  Herne Bay, Kent CT6 5LE

Couple's day at palace

Holiday park boss Malcolm Kent enjoyed a right royal knees-up last Tuesday. The former national chairman of the British Holiday and Home Parks Association was in London to attend a special Buckingham Palace garden party. Mr Kent, from Herne Bay, said:

"I was delighted to receive the invitation and it was a fantastic day out. They give you parking in The Mall, which isn't somewhere you usually choose to park in London! At 4pm the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh arrived, looking stunning for their age. I'm not sure how they do it!"

After tea, the couple were able to explore the gardens and meet the other guests. Mr Kent, who chaired the National Caravan Council from 1997 to 1999, said:

"We had some interesting company, as Alan Titchmarsh was there, along with Andrew Marr and lots of foreign royalty in their very colourful regalia. All in all it was a very memorable day."

Mr Kent's business, Keat Farm, has nine parks across the county for both holiday and residential use.

HB Times 22nd Jul 2011

Bandstand's French visitors

Visitors to the Bandstand were treated to a distinctly continental sound when a French band made a guest appearance. The tunes came courtesy of the Harmonie Municipal Band from Wimereux, a seaside town four miles north of Boulogne that is twinned with the Bay

The Band of about 30 people, ranging in age from teenagers upward, were treated to a buffet lunch at the ex-serviceman's club by the twinning association before their performance last month. They played a variety of music; from Michael Jackson's "Thriller", tributes to Edith Piaf and Tom Jones to light jazz and Disney movie themes.

Spokesman Alison Taylor said:

"The heavy rain showers didn't manage to spoil the afternoon and some of the comments overheard were 'a very talented group of musicians' and "what a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon despite the weather!"

HB Times 22nd Jul 2011

In Bloom outfit's confidence grows

Blooming lovely: From left, Margaret Burns (HBIB publicity officer), Andrew Babbage (RHS judge), Jean Law (KCC councillor) Colleen Ashwin-Kean (HBIB secretary) Jim Buttress (RHS judge), Derek Sidaway (HBIB chairman) and Chris Sears (Serco representative)It's going to be a long summer for the Herne Bay in Bloom (HBIB) team as they wait to see what judges thought of their colourful campaign. Organisers must keep everything crossed until September, after the judges visited on Thursday. Spokeswoman Margaret Burns said she was cautiously optimistic:

"It's always hard to say, but we got some very good vibes. We all felt very positive about everything. Even if we don't get a gold, I think everyone felt very good about what we'd managed to achieve this year, and we feel the town has been looking really nice."

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) judges hit the town on Thursday to be shown this year's projects by the team. These included the seafront gardens, town centre planters, Sea Street roundabout, Curtis Wood Park and Goldspot's pond, sensory and community kitchen gardens in the Memorial Park, Herne Infant School, the green burial ground at Herne Bay cemetery, and Eddington Lane allotments.

The Memorial Park was also judged separately under the parks and gardens section of the South and South East in Bloom competition. This was followed by a reception in the community lounge at Richmond Court, where Kent county councillor Jean Law thanked all the committee and contributors to this year's campaign for their hard work.

HBIB secretary Colleen Ashwin-Kean was presented with a bouquet as a recognition of all her hard work on behalf of the committee during the past year. The results of this year's campaign will be announced on September 7. The next event in the Herne Bay in Bloom calendar is the Giant Picnic in the Park on Sunday, August 28.

For more information visit www.HerneBayinBloom.co.uk, e-mail herne_bayinbloom@live.co.uk or call 07549 392916.

HB Times 21st Jul 2011

Not the End of the Pier Show

Dash along to the Herne Bay Museum and see the brand new "Not the End of the Pier Show" - running until 11th September.

'New regime' clashes with Pier Trust

Museum bosses tore down a poster promoting Herne Bay Pier Trust, despite the fact that the latest exhibition is dedicated to the iconic seaside structure. Despite protests from staff at the William Street museum, managers insisted the poster had to be removed because it did not fit in with the council's corporate branding.

Pier trust members who complained were told the poster had been put in the wrong place. Trust chairman Julian Jennings said:

"It's bureaucracy gone mad. I don't think the staff knew there was a right and wrong place for posters, so they were not happy when it was taken down. But it's now been put up in the right place, so we hope everyone is happy."

The row is the latest in a series of grumbles since the museum shop was taken over by the council's visitor services team in a bid to make more money. Staff now wear Canterbury-branded uniforms, and city-branded leaflets are on display around the museum. Visitors who do not have a residents' card issued by the council must also pay to enter the exhibitions, after a review initially recommended shutting the museum.

David Cross, secretary of the Friends of the Museum, said:

"There is a completely new regime in charge of the museum and they are still trying things out. They are aware they will get things wrong, and have done so, and we the Friends are concerned about that. But we are confident we will arrive together at the right conclusion."

Council spokesman Steve James added:

"We've always been very supportive of the Pier Trust and its work in the community, and only removed the posters from the Herne Bay Museum as part of a general tidy-up of the building entrance. But after being contacted by a trust member, we agreed to put the posters back, and these posters will complement trust leaflets which are always on display. No offence was intended, and we hope that we can continue to display trust posters in a co-ordinated manner. We're proud that Herne Bay Museum and Gallery forms an integral part of the community, and we always respond positively to feedback supplied by local residents."

HB Times 15th Jul 2011

Creche, bang, wallop! Mums win.

Dozens of mums are delighted after the city council reversed a decision to close a creche in Herne Bay. The Pier Pavilion Sports Centre will close in September, and facilities including the creche will move to the newly refurbished Herons Leisure Pool. But childcare provision appeared to be left out as mums were told to start taking their children to Kingsmead Leisure Centre in Canterbury instead.

Active Life, which looks after all council-owned leisure facilities in the district, had told members who use the existing day creche at the Pier Pavilion there would be no room at Herons. More than 130 children are registered on the creche’s books and the news had come as a huge disappointment to their mums.

But Denise Rigden, from Tankerton Road, Whitstable took the issue straight to the city council’s deputy head of culture and enterprise David Ford. The 37-year-old was growing concerned about where to take son Max, aged 18 months, after September. She said:

"I made my views known to him directly and explained how valued a service it is and the great job done by all its staff. He was extremely helpful and was prepared to listen to concerns. It’s fantastic news to hear it will be staying put at Herons and a huge relief. I thought my exercise days would be over come September and some members have been in tears at the prospect of having to stop going to their classes."

David Ford said:

"The provision of new creche facilities were always to form part of the refurbished Herons Leisure Pool. Active Life took the initial decision not to provide a creche service as it was becoming clear that it was very difficult to effectively run it to the same standard as that provided on the Pier. However, mindful of the value customers place on this service, creche provision will remain at Herons as originally planned and Active Life is working with the council on options to make sure a solution is found to ensure the continuation of this service."

HB Gazette 13th Jul 2011

Message in a Bottle

Local litter action group 'Shore' is a load of Rubbish! is still going strong.

Their project for 2011 is Message in a Bottle.

With the help of two local schools (Westmeads Whitstable and St Stephens Canterbury) they are constructing a full-sized beach hut from recycled materials, including 2 litre plastic bottles filled with beachcombed litter and facts about marine litter.

More details below.

‘Message in a Bottle’ Dates 2011

Exhibition at Herne Bay Library
28th June-22nd July
9-6 Monday-Fridays 9-5 Saturdays

Herne Bay Band Stand/Sea Front
August, location TBC

Reculver Visitor Centre
1st-29th August
11-5 Thursday-Monday

Horsebridge Centre Whitstable
8th-18th September
9-6 Monday-Saturday 10-6 Sunday

For more information, and great pictures of work in progress and previous exhibits, visit

shoreisaloadofrubbish.blogspot.com