KCC Leader Paul Carter has paid tribute to the council’s staff who had helped produce the budget for the coming financial year, despite huge further cutbacks in monies from central government. After producing savings of £640 million over the past eight years, the council has risen to the challenge of finding another £73 million to…
Kent County Council’s Counter Fraud Team has secured its first prosecution as it cracks down on blue badge misuse in the county. Laura Halford, of Watling Street, Dartford, appeared before magistrates where she admitted fraudulently using her grandmother’s blue badge to park in disabled parking spaces. The 31-year-old was handed a three-year conditional discharge and…
Do something green in 2019. That was the message sent out by Sevenoaks Primary School pupils as they helped create a wildlife pond to mark the launch of Kent Year of Green Action. Based on the government’s national Year of Green Action campaign, Kent Year of Green Action is an initiative of Kent County Council’s…
Ashford / Canterbury / Education / Media Releases / Schools / Shepway
A teenager from Kent has spoken in Parliament about her own mental health struggles and the importance of involving young people in shaping and improving the services that support them. On Tuesday, February 5, four young people, from Folkestone, Ashford and The Canterbury High School, attended a Parliamentary event on the mental health of young…
Teenagers in Gravesend are launching a new podcast this week for ‘Time To Talk’ Day – the national campaign encouraging conversation around mental health. Called ‘Thrive’, the podcast will be available to listen to online from the morning of Thursday 7 February and hopes to show others that they are not alone and that support…
Customer satisfaction surveys held at Kent’s waste and recycling centres has found 99% of users are happy with the service they receive. A new report released by Kent County Council into feedback for its Household Waste and Recycling Centres (HWRCs) found they are performing extremely well. The waste management team is responsible for operating 18…
An extensive repair and improvement programme to clear vegetation from Kent’s footpaths has begun. Kent County Council look after trees, hedges, shrubs, flowers and grass verges in the county and deals with weeds on roads and pavements. Planned maintenance is carried out throughout the year but this new initiative aims to tackle pavements ensuring they…
An opportunity for passengers to tell Kent County Council about their experiences of using bus services has been launched. KCC’s new Bus Feedback Portal is available at www.kent.gov.uk/busfeedback and allows people to provide details on their experiences of the services they use. This information can then be used by the council to try and improve…
Kent County Council has become the first local authority in the UK to sign up to a free scheme meaning when documents are printed, a tree is planted. Working in partnership with our printing supplier, Xerox, we have gained this added benefit via their agreement with PrintReleaf to help reduce the loss of forests globally.…
A Dartford shopkeeper has been given a suspended prison term for selling illegal and counterfeit tobacco. Ali Anwari, the owner of East Hill Groceries, appeared for sentence at Maidstone Crown Court . KCC Trading Standards prosecuted Anwari for three offences of possessing for supply tobacco product which did not have the correct health warning labelling…
With cold and wintry weather predicted over the next few days, families across Kent are being urged to follow a few simple measures to keep their loved ones safe and healthy. A level two cold weather alert has been announced for Kent by the Met Office which triggers actions in the NHS, public health, social…
Two men caught selling counterfeit clothing at a Kent market have been given suspended prison sentences, following an investigation by KCC Trading Standards. Blaine Boon and Jagdish Naran were sentenced to six months, suspended for 18 months, plus a community service order of 140 hours unpaid work. A third man, Ricky Hirani, was sentenced to…
A ground-breaking suicide prevention app, Stay Alive, is now available for people in Kent and Medway. With lots of useful information and tools to help individuals stay safe in a crisis, Stay Alive can help both people who may be having thoughts of suicide and those concerned about someone else. As well as useful advice…
Footy-mad kids from Kent and their families will be encouraged to cut down on sugar thanks to a new partnership between the Kent FA, Kent County Council (KCC) and the NHS. Football clubs across the county are being asked to run ‘Sugar Smart Tournaments’ this year, as part of a new Change4Life campaign by Public…
Two consultations have been launched proposing bus pilots in Maidstone and West Malling. It comes following last year’s Big Conversation, which gauged opinion on how Kent County Council could best help provide sustainable rural transport. KCC currently supports services 13 and 59 in Maidstone. The proposal revises these services to become feeder buses, which provide…
After a relatively mild winter – so far – Kent County Council has once again launched its pothole blitz for 2019. KCC will have 11 local contractors delivering the blitz as follows: Dartford and Gravesham – O’Rourke Contracting; Sevenoaks – SCG; Tunbridge Wells – Kenson Contractors; Maidstone – Duke Contractors; Tonbridge and Malling – Tom…
Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) today committed to an ambitious long-term project that will make the Thames Estuary the world’s largest creative corridor; a world leader for the creative and cultural industries. The award of £4.3m funding into a £6.7m programme to the University of Kent, on behalf of the Thames Estuary Production…
