Times of Tunbridge Wells 25th August 2021

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Wednesday August 25 | 2021

MP’s ambitions for PM after electric Commons speech TONBRIDGE MP Tom Tugendhat has admitted he has his sights set on Number 10 Downing Street after making an impassioned speech about the Afghan withdrawal last week.

The former soldier triggered messages of praise from across the political spectrum after he recalled his own experiences in the troubled country and said the retreat by US and British forces ‘Damned well felt like defeat’.

After his speech, the MP was asked if he wanted to be Prime Minister one day.

He replied: “Of course I want to try to shape decisions. Of course that means I want leadership positions, because that’s how you bring about change.”

Full story page 3

Local & Live is back in Calverley Grounds ON THEIR WAY: Hundreds of refugees fleeing in an RAF Hercules with many heading to the UK for help

By Richard Williams FIVE Afghan families who have escaped the Taliban takeover are to be rehomed in Tunbridge Wells. And there are plans to help more.

Councils across the UK have been asked to take in refugees from the stricken state as part of the Government’s Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme.

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council [TWBC] was due to announce that they had found a home for an Afghan translator and their family under the previous Afghan Locally Employed Staff Relocation scheme.

However, following the worsening situation in the country, the authority decided to offer assistance to more people. Councillor Andy Fairweather, Cabinet member for Communities and

Wellbeing at TWBC said: “I think residents who are aware of what’s been happening in Afghanistan will agree we have an obligation to help these people, many of whom have risked their lives to help our troops.

‘Five families within one year falls short of what we must offer’ “I am very pleased we’re going to be able to help more than one family this year. It is the right thing to do.”

The Council has previously helped Afghan interpreters settle in the area and has housed and supported ten Syrian families following the earlier conflict in that country.

The new Afghan families will be living

in private rented accommodation but the Council said they would like to hear from landlords who have family sized homes that could support the resettlement initiative so they can rehouse more.

The idea of helping others comes amid calls to reach out to more families fleeing the Taliban terror.

One such voice is that of former intelligence officer Mike Tapp who lives in Tunbridge Wells and served two operational tours in Afghanistan.

In an open letter to the Times (Page 15) he says: “Five homes within one year falls short of what we surely must be able to offer. We should be leading on this one and setting an example.

“If we offer 10 homes and other

See more on page 2

THOUSANDS of music fans are expected to flock to Tunbridge Wells this Bank Holiday weekend as the town’s free music festival returns after a year’s hiatus due to the pandemic.

The 16th Local & Live kicks off this Friday night [August 27] and continues throughout the weekend until Sunday night [August 30].

The weather is predicted to remain sunny all weekend, and music fans are due to be entertained by hundreds of live acts in various venues in the town, including on the purpose-built main stage in Calverley Grounds.

Last year, the free music festival went online only due to the impact of the Covid crisis.

Now it has returned and organiser Paul Dunton said the bank holiday festival is set to bring in up to 15,000 visitors this weekend.

See our FREE eight-page official festival pull-out on pages 21-28

2

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Wednesday August 25 | 2021

this week… Expectant mums told that they

can no longer give birth at home

By Richard Williams

JUST THE JOB: Why the number of people unemployed in Tunbridge Wells remains static despite furlough coming to an end . P8 FIRST CLASS: Tonbridge School’s Barton Science building is awarded top RIBA prize for its state of the art design. P16

LET THE MUSIC PLAY: Don’t miss our special Local & Live festival pull-out.

Organiser Paul Dunton reveals who’s on when. P21 WORDSMITH: Our interview with solicitor-turnedsuccessful local author Sonia Velton – who has published her second book – is a must-read. P38

CONTACTS EDITORIAL DIRECTOR RICHARD MOORE richard.moore@onemediauk.co.uk | 01892 779615 DEPUTY EDITOR EILEEN LEAHY eileen.leahy@onemediauk.co.uk.co.uk | 01892 576037 CHIEF REPORTER RICHARD WILLIAMS richard.williams@onemediauk.co.uk |01892 240626 DESIGN/PRODUCTION LEE SMITH lee.smith@onemediauk.co.uk ADVERTISING 01892 779580 advertising@onemediauk.co.uk FIND US ONLINE facebook.com/timeslocalnews www.timeslocalnews.co.uk twitter.com/timeslocalnews

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THE Trust that runs Tunbridge Wells Hospital has said it has stopped providing support for home births due to ‘pressures’ on its maternity services caused by a shortage of midwives.

The Royal College of Midwives has said a long-term shortage of midwives has been exacerbated by the pandemic, leaving many hospitals short of essential maternity staff.

‘We would like to express our sadness and understand this will be disappointing’ Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust [MTW], which runs both the Pembury based hospital and the Maidstone facility, has now told expectant mothers they can no longer give birth at home.

MTW say ensuring all births take place in a hospital would ensure the safety of mothers and babies.

In a statement to pregnant women, the Trust said: “Due to significant pressures on our maternity services, we have taken the extremely difficult decision to temporarily suspend our homebirth service.

“We would like to express our sadness with this decision and understand this will be

disappointing to those who have chosen a home birth but your safety remains our priority.

“The maternity team are working tirelessly to minimise the impact on your pregnancy experience and this decision will be reviewed regularly.”

East Kent Hospitals NHS trust has also decided to suspend home births due to the midwife shortage.

MTW had been criticised earlier in the pandemic for its strict rules on visitors at its maternity services, with pregnant women

Testing time as learners have to wait five months THE government agency that runs the driving test centre in Tunbridge Wells says they are ‘doing all we can’ as they battle a backlog of tests in the town.

Learner motorists who wish to book their practical driving test at the Upper Grosvenor Road site can expect a five month wait for a date, as record numbers of people look to take their test following the pandemic.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency [DVSA] that runs the Tunbridge Wells Driving Test Centre says they are taking measures such as training 300 more examiners nationwide to handle the backlog.

Cancellations A spokesman said learners who wish to book, can expect to have to wait until January for a test, but added: “You are looking at January at the moment, but people who are not ready for their test do sometimes cancel it, so slots become available all the time. We would advise people keep trying.”

During the Covid crisis, driving tests had to be cancelled for 12 months and were only restarted

in March this year, meaning as many as 1.3 million new drivers are likely to book a test in the UK over the next twelve months, more than twice the normal number.

DVSA Chief Executive, Loveday Ryder, said the organisation was ‘doing all we can to provide as many tests as possible so we can get our services back to normal’.

He added: “I know learners will be keen to take their test now, but it is important that candidates are properly prepared and don’t rush to take it.

“With more than half of candidates failing, and demand currently extremely high for tests, learners should only take their test when they are confident they can pass.

“This will help them to avoid a lengthy wait for a retest and help us by not adding to the backlog of tests.”

Even when learners finally do pass their test, they face a further five-month waiting list to get their new licence.

The Driving and Vehicles Licensing Agency [DVLA] say new applicants can expect to wait 16 and 20 weeks for a licence, and blamed social distancing rules in the Swansea HQ for the delay.

unable to bring partners with them to many appointments.

This policy has now been reversed and women can have somebody with them throughout all stages of pregnancy.

The news also comes as MTW is struggling to get through record backlogs of patients due to the Covid crisis.

Some 35,000 people are currently waiting for non-emergency treatments such as hip operations.

Council to house Afghan families fleeing Taliban Continued from front page councils follow suit it will lead to the faster resettlement of 20,000 refugees in the UK.” Mike Tapp has previously stood as a Labour candidate in a borough council election.

Lib Dem councillor Peter Lidstone (St Johns Ward) was among those who reacted last week after seeing the story about helping refugees break online via this newspaper.

“I was glad to see the Times online coverage,” he said as he recalled (see also Page 15) the time he knocked on the door of a Syrian refugee family living in the town a few years ago.

Allowance “Their warm welcome on the doorstep and their joy at their children attending a nearby school, will stay with me for a long time.”

Landlords willing to help rehome Afghan refugees will be paid local housing allowance rates as part of the scheme.

Across the UK, councils have pledged to rehome refugees from Afghanistan after the Government announced the UK will take up to 20,000 people fleeing the Taliban.

Tonbridge & Malling Borough Council has pledged to take in refugees from the troubled country but has not yet said how many it can accommodate.

Kim Tanner, Tonbridge Council’s cabinet member for housing, said the authority previously supported 12 Syrian refugee families and were now appealing for landlords to get in touch.

Wealden District Council has yet to make any pledge to take in refugees, although MP Nus Ghani has said she spoke to the authority and ‘received a positive assurance’ from the council that they will.

Any landlords in Tunbridge Wells able to offer accommodation are asked to get in touch with the housing team on 01892 526121 while Tonbridge landlords should email housing.services@tmbc.gov.uk For the latest on the situation in Afghanistan see page 12.

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

NEWS IN BRIEF

Body of pensioner pulled from Medway THE body believed to be of an elderly man who went missing last week has been found in the Medway River in Tonbridge.

Police have said the remains found at the Racecourse Park area on Saturday, August 21, have not yet been identified, but the family of 84-year-old local man David Haselden, who went missing on Tuesday, have been told of the discovery.

The death is not being treated as suspicious.

Covid case rates rise HEALTH officials have said ‘don’t guess’ and take a test following a rise in local coronavirus cases.

In Tunbridge Wells, the number of people that have tested positive for Covid-19 in a week has risen from 277 to 378 in the seven days to August 19.

Hospitalisations have fallen with Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust [MTW] admitting 14 patients a week according to last week’s figures, down eight from the previous week.

Around 33 people are currently in either the Pembury hospital or Maidstone Hospital with Covid-19, and four patients were on ventilation.

In East Sussex, health officials have asked people to ensure they are tested if they have symptoms after a rise in areas such as Wealden, which has seen rates rise from 375 to 450 in the seven days to August 19.

The director of public health in East Sussex, Darrell Gale, said: “Please don’t guess if you have Covid. Take a test: continue to complete two lateral flow tests a week if you don’t have symptoms.”

Recycling bookings THE authority that runs the Household Waste Recycling Centre in Tunbridge Wells is asking residents if they should make the booking system permanent.

Kent County Council [KCC] introduced online appointments for all of its 18 household waste centres during the pandemic to ensure social distancing.

KCC’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Susan Carey, said the council has now launched a consultation on whether to keep the system.

She said: “We know, from people surveyed, that it has proved popular with the majority who have taken part in our questionnaires, but we want to hear from those who may not have shared their thoughts with us before.”

Residents have until September 30 to give their views at www.kent.gov.uk/ wasteconsultation.

Taxi driver banned A CROWBOROUGH taxi driver has lost his licence and been fined £10,000.

Donald Richards of Ashdown Cars, originally had his private hire licence revoked by Wealden District Council in November 2019 following a number of allegations of unacceptable behaviour.

He appealed to Brighton Magistrates to overturn the decision, but lost his appeal during a three-day hearing that concluded earlier this month.

The court heard Mr Richards acted inappropriately towards a female passenger, and in a separate incident, assaulted another taxi driver at Crowborough train station in October 2019.

As well as upholding Wealden Council’s decision to revoke his licence, Mr Richards was also ordered to pay £10,000 in costs.

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MP aims for Number Ten after electrifying speech on Taliban

By Jonathan Banks

IMPASSIONED Mr Tugendhat’s speech was received by a hushed chamber

TONBRIDGE MP Tom Tugendhat has, it seems, set his sights on becoming Prime Minister.

He made his ambitions clear in an interview with a Sunday newspaper following an emotive speech last week in Parliament in which he said the ongoing Afghanistan debacle ‘damn well feels like’ defeat.

The former soldier triggered messages of praise from across the political spectrum after he recalled his own experiences in that country.

He was among several MPs to criticise US President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump for their decision to withdraw US forces from Afghanistan.

Leadership His phone was said to be buzzing with congratulations from Tory colleagues which prompted a Mail on Sunday journalist, during a follow up interview, to ask him if he wanted to be Prime Minister.

He replied: “The point of politics is you try to do your best for your country and the people we serve. I’m determined that this is about putting our people and our country first.

“Of course I want to try to shape decisions. Of course that means I want leadership positions, because that’s how you bring about change.”

The newspaper said that in plain English that was a ‘yes’ to the question about becoming Prime Minister. The MP had addressed a hushed Commons after it was recalled last Wednesday [August 18], saying he had struggled through ‘anger, grief and rage’ in watching the Taliban take control of Afghanistan.

Big Brit award pop star celebrates one of his smallest sell-out shows

SINGER Rag ‘n’ Bone Man played Tunbridge Wells Forum on Monday and was rewarded for selling out the tiny venue.

The singer, real name Rory Graham whose hits include Human and Giant, played the iconic Tunbridge Wells venue as part of a campaign to help revive grassroots music venues.

He lives locally and had played The Forum, a former public toilet on the Common, before he became a big star, although on that occasion it was not a full house.

Monday’s gig was sold out in minutes when tickets went on sale last month, and the star was rewarded with a trophy from the music venue.

The Forum tweeted: “Brit awards, Shmit awards.

All things like that are just put to shame when you win the ‘Sold Out show at The Forum’ trophy.

“Well done to @RagNBoneMan for finally reaching his peak!

“Ladies, gents and everything in between…Rag N Bone Man is a sell-out.”

He said it was with ‘great sadness’ that he had to criticise the US, after President Biden had called into question the bravery of Afghan soldiers as the Taliban rapidly took over the country.

“To see their commander in chief (President Joe Biden) call into question the courage of men I fought with, to claim that they ran is shameful.

“Those who have not fought for the colours they fly should be careful about criticising those who have,” he said.

He recalled his time as an adviser to the governor of Helmand and the ‘joy’ given to families by the opening of schools for girls, before leaving MPs with a second, ‘harder’ image, which he explained: “It is the image of a

man whose name I never knew, carrying a child who had died hours earlier, carrying this child into our fire base and begging for help. There was nothing we could do. It was over.

“This is what defeat looks like when you no longer have the choice of how to help.

“This doesn’t need to be defeat but at the moment it damn well feels like it.”

Wealden MP Nusrat Ghani also spoke last week, telling the Commons of the women she had worked with in Afghanistan while in the country for the BBC World Service.

“I am now receiving phone calls and they are telling me it is game over,” she said.

Tunbridge Wells MP Greg Clark was not selected to speak.

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Train fares are on track for record rise with commute nearing £6,000

By Richard Williams COMMUTERS from Tunbridge Wells to London can expect to pay around £250 a year more from January with the largest fare rises in a decade predicted.

If ticket prices are based on the same government metric as last year, fares are set to rise by around five per cent.

Increases are usually linked to the previous July’s Retail Prices Index (RPI) measure of inflation, plus an added percentage point.

STATION Commuters in Tunbridge Wells could be hit with a £250 season ticket rise

pay for their commute.

The news comes as the rail network is struggling to attract commuters back following the Covid crisis.

Around 2.8 million fewer journeys were being taken out of Tunbridge Wells station in 2020/21,

as national passenger numbers plunge to their lowest levels since 1872.

Southeastern, which provides train services in Tunbridge Wells, Crowborough and the surrounding areas, has seen passenger numbers plunge to 22.4 per cent of pre pandemic levels.

Iconic gas holder landmarks to be demolished for apartment blocks The Harris Partnership incorporates all the detail we envisaged to deliver a high-quality, modern living development.

“Ideally, the landscaping we have planned for the riverside will be the catalyst for further development along the Medway, such as the creation of more public space, strengthening connections to the town and the waterfront experience.”

Ian Perrell, Director at The Harris Partnerships, architects for the project, added: “This scheme is truly forward-thinking with the needs of the residents at the core.

NEW LOOK How the apartment blocks will look and [below] one of the gas holders as it is now

Flawed

By Robert Forrester AN industrial landmark is set to be torn down and replaced with apartment blocks, if a new planning application is approved.

The gas holders in Tonbridge, seen by commuters using the nearby rail line, are to be demolished and replaced by 144 new homes.

Blueberry Homes wants to regenerate the Tonbridge Gas Works site with a new development featuring residential accommodation, flexible commercial space and a new public square.

The two gas holders were built by Tonbridge Gas Company, which was established in the town in 1836. The landmarks would have originally housed the area’s gas before it was pumped into people’s homes.

They last operated more than 20 years ago and have been derelict ever since.

The developer has asked for planning permission to replace the giant structures near Medway Wharf Road with two apartment blocks containing one, two and three bedroomed homes.

Tunbridge Wells station saw its season ticket commuter numbers fall from 3,472 a day to just 1,041.

A number of employers have since said they will continue a mix of home and office working rather than ask employees to return full-time.

Some employers have also argued that a move to more homeworking could see salaries slashed, with firms based in cities such as London often paying higher wages to cover travel costs.

Tech giant Google has already told employees based in the office before the pandemic to expect to see changes in pay if they switch to working from home permanently, with commuters taking the longest journeys being hit hardest.

Alternative

‘Essential workers in low paid jobs should not be penalised’ The Office for National Statistics confirmed last week that the RPI for July was 3.8 per cent, which means a repeat of the policy next year would see fares rise by an average of 4.8 per cent – the largest increase since 2012.

The record hike would mean a standard annual season ticket into London from Tunbridge Wells will increase £242 from £5,046 to £5,298.

Those commuters that also rely on the Tube can expect their £5,864 season ticket and travelcard to rise £281 to £6,145.

If the fares do increase as predicted, it will mean commuters will have to earn up to £9,000 before tax (£10,500 for higher rate payers) just to

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

The new buildings replacing the gas works would have a roof terrace, two designated play areas and a large residents’ communal courtyard space.

The developers also promise to make improvements to the footpath which runs along the River Medway ‘making it a safer and more attractive place to be for everyone’.

Scott Rigden, Director at Blueberry Homes said: “This is a very challenging site and the design by

“Health and well-being is central, with buildings positioned to maximise the amount of daylight in both the new homes and public spaces, and extensive landscaping to create a calm and attractive environment.

“Communal outdoor residents’ spaces are designed to create a community and the flexible working space on the ground floor accommodates those working from home without being isolated.”

They said once planning permission has been granted, construction would begin in 2022, but it is not the first time somebody has attempted to demolish the gas holders.

In 2020, Tonbridge & Malling Borough Council [TMBC] turned down an application by gas company SGN to dismantle the landmarks.

The planning authority said the application was ‘fundamentally flawed’ because it did not take into account the impact on neighbouring homes.

The planning committee at TMBC is expected to decide the application later in the year.

David Lettington, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Infrastructure at TMBC, said: “The gas holders have a prominent position in Tonbridge’s skyline and any development here must recognise the importance this site has played in the history of the town.”

John Reynolds, Vice Chairman of local rail pressure group, Tonbridge Line Commuters, told the Times rail fares should not be based on the RPI. He said: “Any increase in rail fares should be based on CPI [Consumer Price Index], a lower index which the government uses for calculating most other things including public sector pay increases.

“Some people, especially those essential workers in low paid jobs, have no realistic alternative to using trains and should not be penalised.

“Rail is a very efficient method of moving large numbers of people (and freight) without causing as much pollution or congestion as, for example, road journeys.

“Making fares more expensive will put off many people. As we get back to normal, leisure travel is also increasing and tourist venues would welcome visitors by rail rather than having to build more car parks.”

Pensioner arrested after a dad dies in a four-car pile-up A 76-YEAR-OLD man has been arrested following a four-car pile-up near Tunbridge Wells last week that left a man dead and his two-year-old son in hospital.

The crash happened shortly after 11am on the A267 Frant Road last Wednesday [August 18].

The incident involved a blue Ford Fiesta, a white Renault Master, a silver Toyota Estima and a silver or grey Honda car which failed to stop at the scene.

The driver of the Fiesta, a 36-year-old man from Dartford who has not been named, was pronounced dead at the scene.

His two-year-old son was airlifted to King’s College Hospital in London with head injuries, where his condition was described as ‘critical’.

A section of the road was temporarily closed while police carried out vital investigative work at the scene.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said last week: “Police have been working to trace the driver of one of the vehicles involved and on Thursday [August 19] arrested a 76-year-old man from Tunbridge Wells on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving, causing serious injury by dangerous driving and for failing to stop after a road accident.”

He added that the force is urging any witnesses to come forward and to contact them at collision. appeal@sussex.pnn.police.uk quoting Operation Utility.

WOMAN CUT FROM CAR AFTER THREE-VEHICLE CRASH A WOMAN had to be cut free from her car after three cars collided in Tunbridge Wells on Friday [August 22].

A Kent Fire spokesman said: “A woman has been released from her car following a crash involving two other vehicles in Bayhall Road, Tunbridge Wells, which left one car on its side.

“Firefighters stabilised the vehicle and used battery-powered cutting equipment to create space, allowing paramedics to assess the casualty’s condition.”

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Wednesday August 25 | 2021

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Council stops sniping at rifle club and withdraws its plan for housing

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A RIFLE club that has been in the town for more than 100 years is safe after more than a decade of being threatened with development by the local council.

Tunbridge Wells Target Shooting Club [TWTSC] in Warwick Park has been in the Borough Council’s sights as a location for new housing for the last 13 years.

While Tunbridge Wells Borough Council [TWBC] had promised to relocate the club, which was founded just after the Boer War in 1903 by the then Lord Abergavenny, it had been feared the authority’s plans would have triggered the end of the rifle club if it had to close for any period of time.

The land, which is used for target shooting, is owned by TWBC and is in a prime location in the town centre – ideal for residential development.

The authority had wanted to sell the site to developers so they could build five detached houses and garages, but the council has come under increasing pressure to withdraw its plans because of concern for the club’s future.

Lib Dem councillor James Rands had raised the

issue at of selling off sports facilities at a full council meeting, saying it ‘kills any club’.

While Tunbridge Wells MP Greg Clark warned of the danger of selling off sports facilities in his regular column for the Times [August 4] and said equal or better facilities should always be provided by the Council if they dispose of any land used by local clubs.

TWBC has now confirmed it is no longer seeking to sell off the shooting club’s land and has withdrawn its planning application.

Katie Exon Corporate Property Manager at TWBC told the Times: ‘We recognise that this is a valuable residential site that would have made a contribution to the Council’s housing target, nevertheless we made the decision to withdraw as things have moved on since the detail of the application was prepared.

“We are in discussions with the Rifle Club about a new lease and the Council is having more general discussions with local sports clubs about how they see their future plans.

“We would prefer to wait for the outcome of that before going any further.”

Shooting club Chairman, Nigel Bent, was unavailable for comment.

Violent sex offender jailed after attack on an 81-year-old woman A MAN has been jailed for 13 years after sexually assaulting a pensioner in Tunbridge Wells.

Soufyan Yahyaoui who is from the town, was jailed last week after being found guilty of subjecting the 81-year-old woman to a violent ordeal, which left her suffering injuries including a bleed to the brain.

The 41-year-old called at the woman’s home during the evening of May 12, 2020.

After ringing her doorbell, he claimed he simply wanted to check on her welfare but then forced his way inside.

Dragged He assaulted the victim, leaving her unconscious and with injuries that included carpet burns, indicating she had been dragged along the floor. He had also attempted to sexually assault her.

Nearby residents were alerted to a disturbance and challenged Yahyaoui who fled the scene on foot. He was found and arrested by police officers shortly afterwards.

At Maidstone Crown Court he was convicted of inflicting grievous bodily harm,

breaching a sexual harm prevention order and criminal damage, trespass with intent to commit a sexual offence and sexual assault, and was handed 13 years by a judge last week.

He will have to serve at least eight years before he can be

a ‘dangerous and predatory sex offender’ Speaking after the conviction, he said: “He has deliberately targeted a vulnerable and elderly victim and subjected her to a truly harrowing ordeal.

“His actions have caused immeasurable long-term harm and distress, for which he has shown absolutely no remorse.

“Instead Yahyaoui has chosen to subject his victim to further upset by making them endure a trial.

Justice “He deliberately targeted a vulnerable and elderly victim and subjected her to a harrowing ordeal’ considered for parole. He will also be subject to an extended licence period of one year and was added to the sex offenders register, indefinitely.

Detective Inspector Adam Marshall described Yahyaoui as

“I would like to thank and commend the victim for the tremendous courage they have shown to give evidence and help us ensure Yahyaoui is now serving a significant prison sentence.

“I would also like to thank witnesses in this case, whose intervention and testimony has also been important in securing these convictions.

“The streets are certainly a safer place now he is in prison, and I hope the sentence will provide some comfort to the victim that at least justice has now been served.”

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

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Planning loophole used to build a ‘wall of sheeting’ blighting gardens

By Robert Forrester WHEN residents in Southborough, whose properties overlook the rear of a plumber’s yard, opened their curtains three months ago they were in for a shock. They were confronted by a 20 ft high ‘wall of sheeting’.

The 200 square metre white scaffold structure appeared overnight at the rear of Ability Heating and Plumbing Engineers in London Road.

The firm has now been criticised by local residents for taking advantage of loopholes in planning legislation to enable them to erect the ‘monstrosity’ without any consultation or permission.

a personal service to both our regular and new customers’, needs the temporary building for storage.

A spokesperson for Tunbridge Wells Borough Council said: “A retrospective planning application has been submitted requesting temporary permission for the scaffold structure.

“This application is now being considered by planning officers and a decision is expected to be reached by the end of September.

“Anyone wishing to make representations about the application can do so through the Council’s website.”

WALL OF POLYTHENE The structure seen from neighbours’ gardens in Bedford Road

Outgrown

Ludicrous One neighbour, who we have chosen not to name, told the Times: “I woke up to workmen banging out the back.

When I eventually went into my garden, I couldn’t believe it.”

She said the towering structure stretches the length of the communal garden that she shares with other tenants of a flat on Bedford Road.

“You can’t see anything in the garden as it blocks all the light. It is ludicrous that they are allowed to build it there without any permission,” she added.

She said residents had asked the

council whether the structure needed planning permission and were told because it is temporary, it did not.

“The council said it could stay for two months, but it is still there. It is making our lives miserable,” she

added. “We now learn that he has applied for planning permission which means it could be here for months, even years.”

The owner of the plumbing firm, Daniel Moon, has asked the council to

allow the structure to stay up for up to two years.

He says in his application that his company, which describes itself on its website as ‘a genuine family-run company’ that ‘works hard to provide

Daniel Moon of Ability Plumbing and Heating said he was unaware of the effect his temporary storage shed has had on local residents.

He told the Times: “I don’t want to upset anybody, but nobody has come and said anything to me about it.

“The temporary scaffolding is there to provide shelter for vehicle loading and unloading.

“We have outgrown our base here in London Road, that’s why it is a temporary application, even though we have asked for planning permission for two years, it may be a lot less than that as it will come down as soon as we have found new premises.”

8

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Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Unemployment remains static as staff shortages lead to record job vacancies

By Richard Williams THE number of people unemployed in Tunbridge Wells remains static, despite the approaching end to furlough, latest figures show.

Unemployment has been falling in the borough since January this year, after hitting more than 3,000 in December in the wake of the pandemic.

There had been fears that the figures would rise as the government’s Job Retention Scheme comes to a close next month.

According to the Treasury, around 3,000 workers in Tunbridge Wells are still on the furlough scheme, where the government pays up to 80 per cent of an employee’s wages.

However, data for July from the Office for National Statistics [ONS] shows that the number of people in Tunbridge Wells claiming some form of unemployment benefit remains at 3.6 per cent of the workforce (2,550), unchanged from June.

The ONS says the rate of unemployment across the UK has dipped to 4.8 per cent for the three-month period to the end of June from 4.8 per cent in June.

The statistics body added that there are a record 953,000 job vacancies across the UK, the highest estimated figure since records were started in 2001, JO JAMES with the arts,

leisure and food service sectors in particular contributing to the surge in job openings.

Jonathan Athow, deputy national statistician for economic statistics at the ONS, said: “The world of work continues to rebound robustly from the effects of the pandemic.

“Meanwhile, early survey figures show that the number of job vacancies passed one

‘Record vacancies confirm ongoing recruitment difficulties and a squeeze on labour supply’ million for the first time ever in July.

“There was no sign of redundancies starting to pick up in our survey data ahead of the furlough scheme beginning to wind down, and Insolvency Service figures for July suggest the same.”

Despite this, Jo James, OBE, chief executive of the Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce (pictured right), said she still expects jobless figures to ‘drift’ when furlough finally ends on September 31.

She said: “Record vacancies confirm ongoing recruitment difficulties. Although the changes to self-isolation rules will help, with many firms facing a more deep-rooted squeeze on labour supply from the impact of Covid and Brexit, staff shortages may persistently

weigh on economic activity.

“Although labour demand is currently robust, with firm’s finances still recovering from Covid and skills mismatches likely to limit the extent to which those seeking jobs after furlough can move into available roles, unemployment may still drift somewhat higher in the near term.

“Alongside rapid retraining opportunities, government should extend the Kickstart scheme into 2022 and expand it to enable older workers to gain new skills and experience. A more flexible immigration system is also needed to ensure that firms get access to the workers they need.”

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Crowborough restaurant is shortlisted for Asian awards AN INDIAN restaurant in Crowborough has been shortlisted for this year’s Asian Restaurant Awards.

The national awards are open to restaurants of all Asian and Oriental cuisines. Over 100,000 online votes from members of the spice loving community determined the finalists.

Among those shortlisted is Crowborough’s Rose of Bengal in the South East category.

Judges from the Asian Catering Federation (ACF), which hosts the event, are set to visit the Crowborough Hill venue along with all the other candidates, to determine the overall

category winners.

The winners are to be announced at a gala evening in at the Mercure Piccadilly in Manchester at the end of August.

Resilience ACF chairman Yawar Khan said: “The pandemic has been devastating for many hospitality businesses and its workers.

“These awards will acknowledge the sector’s resilience, innovation and generosity in the face of such adversity.”

Council takes action to protect office space amid planning rules change

By Robert Forrester SHOPS and offices in Tunbridge Wells could be lost when government changes take effect next year, the Council has warned, as it moves to prevent developers taking advantage of new planning laws.

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council [TWBC] say they have spent the last few years protecting office and business space in the borough from being converted to residential use.

The Council first took action in 2018 when it was identified that 22 per cent of office stock in the town of Royal Tunbridge Wells had already been lost to residential use and a further 22 per cent was at risk.

Twenty immediate Article 4 Directions were issued on office buildings in the town centre preventing permitted developments rights from being used to convert or change their use without full planning permission.

Article 4 Directions mean that developers cannot use the permitted development rights that exist in national planning legislation that

would allow them to convert business premises to residential without submitting a planning application.

TWBC has served Article 4 Directions on retail, café and restaurant premises in Bidborough, Horsmonden, Langton Green, Sissinghurst, and Woolley Road in Southborough.

In a study the Council identified these locations as being of high risk of being lost to residential development and are unlikely to be replaced, therefore having a detrimental effect on local communities.

Premises However, changes to legislation governing permitted development rights now mean that these Directions will cease to have effect from July 2022.

Updated research indicates there is still a need for the premises to be protected even though the demand for offices may change in the future.

As a result, the Council has now issued ‘non-immediate Article 4 Directions’ that will come into force once the existing Directions expire,

and two additional Directions on premises not covered by those served in 2018.

Subject to the agreement of the Secretary of State, this means that protection for these buildings will continue.

Depending on their uptake, the new permitted developments rights may pose a threat to the town centres of Paddock Wood, Royal Tunbridge Wells and Southborough and the centres of Rusthall and Pembury.

Cllr Alan McDermott, the head of Planning and Transportation at TWBC, said: “The Council made strong representations about the changes to permitted development when they were consulted on earlier this year, and in 2020.

“We have since moved swiftly and positively through the service of 31 Article 4 Directions to protect those offices, shops and cafes where the risks and consequences of loss to residential are greatest. We will continue to monitor the various town and neighbourhood centres, and we are poised to serve more if necessary.”

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Expansion, expansion, expansion for family-run estate agent firm A LOCAL property agent has expanded to become a real family-run affair.

David and Suzanne Johnson have been running KMJ as a husband and wife team for several years.

The duo have now been joined by son Marc and daughter Katrina.

Life David Johnson, told the Times: “We are very much a family business, Suzanne and I have run our own business since we were 21, with our children growing up in and around

business life, which has given all three of them a great work ethic.

“Most of our new business comes from recommendations which is always a good sign, we hear so many lovely stories about how we are so refreshingly different than other agents.

“Our core area has also expanded - we have recently sold homes in Sevenoaks, Maidstone and Groombridge, and have homes for sale or coming on in Crowborough and Cranbrook as well as in Tunbridge Wells and the surrounding areas.”

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Community News

Quilters set to prove they are more than a patch for the rest

By Daisy Rich-Overall TUNBRIDGE WELLS MP Greg Clark has asked a local quilting community to contribute towards the Parliamentary Coronavirus Memorial Quilt project.

Labour MP and Former Shadow Women and Equalities Secretary Dawn Butler launched the initiative to memorialise the stories of those lost to the pandemic.

MPs, Peers and staff across Parliament are each offering a personally designed block to the project.

ALL SEWN UP Greg Clark and the Quirky Quilters

Slogan Mr Clark contacted The Quirky Quilters to design and create the six-inch block, and they delivered.

Meeting in Speldhurst Village Hall, they produced a piece inspired by the work of Augustus Pugin, the interior architect of the House of Parliament.

The quilters utilised English Paper Piecing, the traditional hand-sewing method used in quilting.

Four letter Cs embroidered around the edge signal the project’s purpose: to create, connect, convey and commemorate.

The Italian phrase ‘Andra tutto bene’ is embroidered at the base of the block, which translates to ‘all will be well’, and the slogan, often paired with rainbows, went viral during Italy’s lockdowns as a way to keep morale up.

The rainbows then spread across to the UK to commemorate the efforts of the NHS. Mr Clark congratulated the quilters on their efforts and met with them to take their block to Parliament.

He said the block will “capture and commemorate the nation’s experience of the Covid Pandemic and will be a piece of history admired by generations to come.

“I am delighted that the Tunbridge Wells

THE Council has installed wooden ‘parklets’ in the High Street in Tunbridge Wells to replace the temporary plastic barriers that went in when the road was made one-way a year ago.

The new street furniture, which includes wooden benches, tables and planters, was installed earlier this month with money provided from the town’s Business Improvement District [BID] and government’s Reopening The High Street Safely fund.

Temporary plastic barriers were erected last August when KCC and TWBC made the road a one way system.

The scheme was part of the Government’s

‘active travel’ initiatives, rolled out in the wake of the Covid crisis to promote walking and cycling.

When they were first installed, the plastic red and white dividers were branded ‘ugly’, ‘unsightly’, and ‘unwelcoming Lego Bricks’ by residents and traders.

Planters The Council is now looking to make the one-way system permanent and has finally replaced the plastic barriers with the new wooden planters.

Cllr Alan McDermott, head of planning and transport at TWBC, said: “The new parklets and

11

Newsagent marks four decades in Crowborough A female NEWSAGENT is celebrating her ruby anniversary at Crowborough Community Newsagents.

Lynda Weller celebrates a remarkable milestone at C V Field-buss.

Having joined the shop in 1981, Lynda has seen her local newsagents through quite a few news flashes.

Born and raised in High Brooms, Lynda decided to join the newsagents after moving to Crowborough.

Her long-lasting career stemmed from a postcard advertisement in her own local newsagents.

Now a central figure within the community, C V Field-buss owners Michael and Timothy Fitt felt it necessary to celebrate Lynda’s milestone.

Shop owner Michael Fitt has said that Lynda “has counselled hundreds of customers throughout her years here and is a credit to the community she serves. We can’t thank her enough!”

constituency will be represented on the national Quilt by the beautiful square sewn by my constituents.”

Each block will be sewn together to create a tapestry that echoes the experiences, struggles, losses and enduring love during Lockdown.

There will be a book to accompany the finished quilt, auctioned off to raise money for charity.

You can follow the quilt’s progress on its Twitter @ParliQuilt

High Street ‘Lego bricks’ finally replaced

By Richard Williams

NEWS

planters are a welcome addition to the High Street and help to make the area a more pleasant place to visit. It is an important part of the town centre and deserves to be more than just a cut-through for motorists.

“The High Street already contains many cafes and restaurants along with some fantastic boutiques and independent retailers. We hope that making it more pedestrian friendly will encourage even more visitors and businesses to the area. Although the scheme is temporary at present, we will closely monitor how it works and will take on board feedback from traders and local residents. We can then decide on the best long-term plan for this historic part of Tunbridge Wells.”

Bishop to open town centre youth club A NEW Christian centre for young people is to be opened on this week by the Bishop of Tonbridge.

Reverend Simon Burton-Jones, whose Diocese of Rochester covers Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells and other parts of Kent, will visit the new Youth for Christ centre at its official opening on Friday [August 27].

Rev Burton-Jones will offer prayers for the work done by the staff and volunteers of the Christian youth charity and the young people using the centre.

The Bishop of Tonbridge will also pray to commission the youth workers in their roles in the centre, schools and church work.

Empowering

STREET FURNITURE The new parklets on the High Street

Youth for Christ is a community group dedicated to empowering young people through Christianity.

Since its launch in 2009, the charity has worked with local parishes in Tunbridge Wells.

This new centre on Grosvenor Road will allow the charity to run many more activities from their own space and support local schools and churches.

Along with the bishop, local church leaders, youth workers, and a representative from British Youth for Christ will also attend the event.

You can donate to the drop-in centre by sponsoring the staff and trustees walking all 27 miles of the Tunbridge Wells Circular on September 4.

A sponsorship page is available at Rev’d Simon www.yfc.co.uk/ Burton-Jones sponsor/

12

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National News

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Afghan situation getting ‘more dangerous’ as Biden rules out extending evacuation deadline THERE will be no delay tto he departure of US troops from Afghanistan to allow more people to be evacuated, despite crunch talks with G7 leaders, the PM has said.

Boris Johnson met Joe Biden and the other leaders of the seven top economic nations in a virtual meeting yesterday [Tuesday] afternoon where the US Commander and Chief was asked to extend the withdrawal deadline, set for August 31.

An extension would have allowed Britain to evacuate more nationals and Afghan asylum seekers.

The President addressed Mr Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel and other leaders for around seven minutes, Downing Street said, but he ruled out any extension.

Following the emergency meeting, the PM’s office said Mr Johnson and other G7 leaders were unable to convince Mr Biden to delay the deadline for evacuations.

The PM said he expected the UK could extract thousands more people from Taliban-led Afghanistan before the deadline passed.

Ahead of the emergency talks yesterday, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace warned that the security risk in Kabul was getting ‘more and more dangerous’ every day as the August 31 withdrawal date looms.

Acknowledging that ‘we’re not going to get

everybody out of the country’, Mr Wallace expressed pessimism about the prospect of the evacuation operation from Kabul airport continuing past August 31 following the G7 talks on Tuesday.

“I think it is unlikely. Not only because of what the Taliban has said but if you look at the public statements of President Biden I think it is unlikely,” he said.

He also ruled out the UK remaining behind when the US left.

“But for what purpose? For them to be shot at, attacked, people not to get to the airport and to trigger just a permanent fight? I don’t think that is a solution,” he said.

Stance The Taliban, which swept to power last week in the wake of America’s major withdrawal of troops, has suggested that foreign forces remaining past the deadline would cross a ‘red line’ that will “provoke a reaction”.

The group warned on Tuesday that evacuations ‘will not be allowed’ after August 31.

And a spokesman said the Afghans should ‘return to their homes and resume their calm everyday lives’.

He also urged the US not to ‘necourage’ highly skilled people to leave Afghanistan.

8,400 ALREADY EVACUATED The UK has evacuated more than 8,400 people from Afghanistan as part of the rescue mission began less than two weeks ago.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said on Tuesday that Operation Pitting, the military evacuation that began on August 13, has so far taken 8,458 people out of Kabul.

This included people departing the Afghan capital in

nine military flights over a 24-hour period.

Embassy staff, British nationals, those eligible under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap) programme and a number of nationals from partner nations were included in the evacuation figure.

So far, 5,171 of the total have made claims under Arap.

More than 1,000 UK armed

forces personnel have been deployed in Kabul.

The MoD said the evacuation process will run as long as the security situation allows, in coordination with the US. No firm date has yet been set for the end of evacuation flights, it added.

The Mod said the Armed Forces have continued to fly in and distribute aid to support UK and Afghan nationals.

FLEEING Families being processed by UK soldiers in Kabul

Arrests are made as police maintain a ‘significant’ operation at climate protest

Stones drummer Charlie Watts dies aged 80 THE Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts has died at the age of 80, his publicist has said.

The musician, who marked his 80th birthday in June, had been a member of the rock group since 1963.

A statement from his London publicist Bernard Doherty to the PA news agency said: “It is with immense sadness that we announce the death of our beloved Charlie Watts. He passed away peacefully in a London hospital earlier today surrounded by his family.

“Charlie was a cherished husband, father and grandfather and also, as a member of The Rolling Stones, one of the greatest drummers of his generation.

Tour “We kindly request that the privacy of his family, band members and close friends is respected at this difficult time.’’

Earlier this month, it was announced that Watts was to miss the forthcoming US tour.

A spokesman for him said at the time he was ‘unlikely to be available for the resumption of the Rolling Stones USA No Filter Tour this fall’ as he recovered from an unspecified medical procedure.

The band are due to resume the tour Stateside in September, following its postponement last year amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Session and touring musician Steve Jordan was previously announced as Watts’ temporary replacement on drums.

THE MET Police has made ‘many arrests as Extinction Rebellion (XR) activists continued their climate change protest in London yesterday [Tuesday].

Protesters blocked Whitehall in a protest against HMRC’s links to Barclays Bank, which handles the government’s tax collection bank accounts.

On the second day of the environmental protest group’s latest campaign of protest and civil disobedience, activists

CAMPAIGNERS Police look on as protestors block the road in front of HMRC’s collection department

from its Welsh chapter locked themselves together in the street in front of the tax collection department, stopping traffic.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Metropolitan Police said officers had also removed chairs which the activists had glued themselves onto and had made ‘many arrests’.

A spokesman for the force declined to give a running total of arrest numbers but said 52

people had been detained for a ‘variety’ of offences as of 10.15pm on Monday.

A cordon was put in place in the tourist hotspot of Covent Garden, blocking off parts of the Long Acre junction with Upper St Martin’s Lane.

The Met said a ‘significant’ operation would be in place for the protests over the bank holiday weekend but also acknowledged the activists’ ‘important cause’.

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Wednesday August 25 | 2021

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Tourist boards says keep away from Cornwall following festival case spike THE Cornish tourist board has urged people not to visit unless they have pre-booked and to test themselves extensively amid a spike in cases in the county.

On Monday, health officials said they were investigating 4,700 cases of coronavirus which are suspected to be linked to the Boardmasters festival, which took place nearly two weeks ago in Newquay.

The cases are spread across the country but around 800 are living in Cornwall, a council official confirmed.

Yesterday [Tuesday] the Chief executive of Visit Cornwall, Malcolm Bell said tourists should aim to ‘treble their efforts as much as possible’ with the hands, face, space guidance and try to remain outdoors.

Health agency data shows that both Devon and Cornwall have 500 cases or more per 100,000 people in the seven days to August 18. A week

before, the figure was 300 or less per 100,000 people.

Mr Bell said: “We are asking people not to come unless they have booked ahead and request they take a lateral flow test before, during and after (their) stay so that (people) can be safe and help us to manage the current spike.”

Overcrowding He continued: “There is concern and most local residents will be happier in a week or so, when the peak season is over and an older demographic visits as there are too many occurrences of overcrowding in honey pots.

“We are asking visitors to look at visiting other parts of Cornwall.

“We have over 300 beaches and lovely parts that can cope with visitors.”

He added that the vaccination programme in the county was in ‘full flow’ and asked people due to arrive to be patient with

businesses who are short staffed and to book ahead with activities.

A spokesperson for Boardmasters said the festival used the NHS Covid Pass app as a condition of entry to the festival or urged people to show proof of a negative test before entering and asked people to test themselves during the five-day event.

They added that more than 450 people tested positive and left the festival early or did not go in.

“No event is able to eliminate risk entirely and the latest Test & Trace data includes reported infections among the 76,000 people who visited the festival or related activities at Fistral Beach, in Newquay and the wider area during the week of Boardmasters,” they said.

“We will continue to work with our public health partners to understand the extent to which attendance at the festival has contributed to the figures.”

Two-year-old dies after caravan fire A GIRL aged just two has died following a fire at a caravan site.

Lincolnshire Police said they were called to reports of a blaze at Sealands Caravan Park in Ingoldmells, near Skegness, at around 10.30pm on Monday.

The force said a woman and three of her children were able to make it out of the caravan safely, but her fourth child, the toddler, died.

Police said around 50 people were asked to leave caravans in the immediate vicinity of the blaze and were able to go to emergency accommodation created at the Laver Leisure site.

Senior investigating officer Detective Inspector Jo Fortune said: “This is a devastating incident for

all involved.

“We are in the very early stages of our investigations and the circumstances which led to the fire are not yet clear.

“We will be working closely with specialist teams to understand what happened.”

She added: “We would like to appeal to anyone who was there last night and has not yet spoken to police to come forward, and for anyone with video footage to please share that with officers to add to our intelligence of the incident.

“This is particularly harrowing, with a family losing a child, and we’d ask that people remember those victims and not share footage online.”

Blaze fears for Harry Potter café THE Edinburgh café where author JK Rowling wrote her first Harry Potter books was feared to have been impacted by a blaze yesterday [Tuesday] that closed several roads in the Scottish capital.

Emergency services were called to a large fire at George

IV Bridge in Edinburgh at 6am yesterday.

One person was taken to hospital as nine fire engines and two height appliances were sent to the scene with members of the public being asked to avoid the area if possible.

Images from the scene

showed smoke pouring from a branch of Patisserie Valerie, next door to the The Elephant House cafe which was made famous as a place where JK Rowling wrote much of her early Harry Potter series.

It is unknown if the cafe has suffered fire damage.

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Clare Roche started participating in Triathlons five to compete at the Triathlon World To may findhave out to more years ago, but feared she stop training Championships in Lausanne at the beginning of 01892 888199the when sudden pain on aCall regular run heralded September. She was worried she wouldn’t be fit start of a hip problem.Visit nuffieldhealth.com/hospitals/tunbridge-wells/ enough to compete but at the end of August was Clare, who is in her 60s and lives near on the starting line, less than a year following treatments/knee-replacement Wadhurst, has enjoyed a variety of sports from surgery. childhood. More recently she started to compete In between competitions Clare enjoys her ™Trademark & Nephew. ©2019 Smith & Nephew in Triathlons and has represented Great Britain in of Smith grandchildren, hiking, bird watching and international competitions in her age group. One conservation all of which are only possible with day whilst on a usual run, she developed severe the pain free mobility that her new joint brings. pain and was unable to weight bear on her right Mr Velayudham said: “Minimally invasive total hip leg. After hobbling home, things deteriorated replacement is a highly successful procedure quickly. She was unable to walk comfortably for helping patients return to good active lifestyle. any length of time and the night pain that radiated Understanding patients’ expectation is very down the leg into the shin and ankle made sleeping important. Using appropriate prostheses, restoring difficult. Having to cancel her plans for a walking hip anatomy, preserving all the muscles controlling trip to the Himalayas, Clare made an appointment the hip and good rehabilitation helps patients to with her GP. enjoy long good outcome following hip As a physiotherapist with over 40 years of replacement.” experience in the Wadhurst area, she already Claire added: “Having a surgeon who is not only technically excellent but someone who is empathetic to your situation and provides first-rate pre and post op oversight is crucial; Mr Velayudham more than fulfilled these criteria – as I knew he would having seen several of his patients over the years. Also impressive was the care I received at the Nuffield at all levels, from porters knew that the problem was related to her hip. to senior medical staff. One hears horrible stories X-rays showed she had no articular cartilage left in of waiting ages for a nurse when you really need the joint, and as a physiotherapist, she knew the them. That was not my experience; everyone was only option was a hip replacement. Apart from her attentive and professional yet caring. The food competitive sports she has a very busy family life was something special too. with three children and an increasing number of “My advice to anyone who wants to get the grandchildren. Clare wanted to get back to most out of their joint replacement is firstly don’t training as soon as possible. She was keen to leave it too long before having the operation, proceed quickly to prevent her muscle strength secondly try to choose a great surgeon like Mr V, from deteriorating too dramatically. and decided and finally be serious and committed about to go privately. exercises and general fitness both before your She had witnessed great results in patients and operation and for at least 12 month afterwards. friends following hip surgery performed by Mr We can all do more than we think we can!”

Senthil Velayudham, Orthopaedic Hip Surgeon at Nuffield Health, Tunbridge Wells.

Following consultation with Mr Velayudham, he suggested a minimally invasive total hip replacement with ceramic on ceramic bearing surfaces was the way forward and her surgery was scheduled. A ‘total replacement’ means both parts of the joint are replaced – the ball and the socket.

The operation went well with no complications.

For the first ten days Clare used crutches, after which she walked with a stick. At two to three weeks post-surgery she swam regularly and used an exercise bike. Within three-four weeks she walked unaided and could do about an hour of continuous walking. She was religious with her exercises, at home and in the gym, which helped her regain muscle strength; she is still doing them almost 18 months later. At around fourteen weeks after the operation, she began running and walking began, including short intervals of alternate slow jogging combined with brisk walking. Over the following weeks and months these exercises increased in duration and intensity. Four months after the operation, Clare went skiing with no problems. Seven months after her operation she was competing in a triathlon competition and nine months after came second in her first half ironman triathlon.

Prior to her operation Clare had gained a place

“We can all do more than we think we can!”

14

NEWS

Weekly Comment

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Mark Hood The Green Party in Tonbridge & Malling and Tunbridge Wells

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Mark Hood is a Green Party Borough and County Councillor, representing Tonbridge. He is a founder member of Keep River Lawn Green, and campaigned to save the Barden Boatyard and River Lawn from development.

He is also one of the organisers of the Tonbridge Calling festival

Our communities have a proud tradition in offering asylum COUNCILS across Kent have been stepping up to the challenge of resettling families displaced by the unfolding human catastrophe in Afghanistan.

Following Ashford Borough Council’s lead, Tonbridge & Malling and Tunbridge Wells Borough Council have committed to play their part in offering sanctuary through the Government scheme.

Every council should be compelled to step forward and take its share of the responsibility of finding accommodation through private landlords (refugees are not placed in council houses and they do not jump the queue ahead of service veterans who have had priority for social housing since 2020).

Currently Kent County Council has been forced to take the regrettable action of refusing to host any more child refugees as its services have struggled to cope in recent months.

The Government has failed to address a situation which has been unacceptable for over a decade.

All Counties should shoulder the financial cost of caring for those displaced by conflict.

Rather than issuing a clarion call which has fallen on deaf ears to assist it needs to compel each council across this nation to play its part.

Our communities have a proud tradition in offering respite during traumatic times stretching back centuries and migrant

communities like the Huguenots for instance have enriched our nation in the same way that modern day equivalents generally contribute more to our nation than those lucky enough to born here in terms of tax.

In World War One Tonbridge played host to hundreds of Belgian refugees and this caring tradition continues through the work of Tonbridge Welcomes Refugees and the partnership role they fulfil in assisting Tonbridge & Malling Borough Council in supporting ten households displaced by the Syrian conflict. Tonbridge and Malling Green Party is proud to support their invaluable work.

nation building and expecting to walk away without fully paying the price of resettlement for the thousands of support staff now in danger of the most terrifying reprisals was never acceptable.

Tom Tugendhat drew plaudits for his emotional oration in the House of Commons last week. In terms of leadership in this matter it is hard to imagine a less competent pair than the current Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary

and the member for Tonbridge & Malling might well wonder why his expertise in the field of geopolitical relationships remains relatively overlooked when the incumbent Foreign Secretary has such little grasp of what has unfolded.

Rarely has the nation been saddled with holders of the great offices of state picked on the basis of blind obedience rather than their competence or expertise.

Resettlement There has been no long-term economic burden caused by offering sanctuary despite the protestations of the most mean-spirited.

The exclamation that we are full is also far from the truth, there are many more homes remaining empty than homeless families, what is required is the political will to force landlords to lease empty properties.

If this nation wants to be Global Britain it needs to stop behaving like Little England when it has to account for its actions in regions where it has cultivated conflict. Turning our backs on Afghanistan half way through the process of

ASYLUM Afghan refugees being processed in Kabul last week

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Letters

NEWS

15

And another thing…

This is the page where you, the reader, have your chance to express your views or comments on what’s going on in our part of the world. We like to hear from you. You can email us at newsdesk@timesoftunbridgewells.co.uk or you can write to the Editor, Times Local News, Salomons Estate, Tunbridge Wells TN3 0TG interpreters, NGOs, local embassy staff and those fighting alongside the US and Nato forces be allowed to come here on a fast track.

The UK must act in order to uphold universal human rights if she wants to retain her position as a leading power on the world stage. She must stand up to the rising powers in Asia now and not retreat from the world stage. By exercising her soft powers, she will reclaim some credibility in world events.

Therefore, I ask you to intercede for the people of Afghanistan in today’s [August 19] debate.

Cllr. Marguerita Morton [Lib Dem] Tunbridge Wells

Housing Afghans is the least we can do

Having served in Afghanistan on two operational tours of duty, I, along with other military veterans, find helplessly watching this humanitarian tragedy particularly painful.

While working in Helmand as an Intelligence Officer, a part of my role was to engage with the enemy in attempts to negotiate peaceful solutions. It was a high-risk role that saw me and my colleagues operating up close and personal with the very people that wanted to do us harm, the Taliban.

There is no way we could have done this without the brave, selfless Afghan interpreters whose work put their lives and their families lives at risk. There is no doubt that their bravery saved lives and now those that worked with our armed forces are being hunted by the Taliban.

Abuses Women in Afghanistan, working in Government jobs for example, have had their freedoms taken away from them overnight and will be punished by the Taliban if they attempt to continue working. The Taliban have given assurances that women rights will be respected, however, we have already seen human rights abuses in the country against women, with stories of girls being raped and of women being stoned to death.

As well as brutal abuse, during the Taliban’s last reign, women in Afghanistan could not work, they could not be educated and they could not leave the house without a male. This is what we will see again. The Taliban has not changed.

Here in Tunbridge Wells, it feels a million miles away from this tragedy but we can help these women, their children and the heroic interpreters. Last week, the Government announced that the UK will take up to 5,000 Afghans in the first year, with up to a total of 20,000 in the long term. But many feel this does

Open letter to Greg Clark MP I have viewed with horror the incidents of the last few days in Kabul and have watched reports of desperate Afghans trying to escape the cruel regime that has taken power from the legitimate government in Afghanistan.

I am glad that PM Boris Johnson has announced that he will open the doors to the UK for 20,000 Afghan migrants and that 5,000 will be allowed

not go far enough.

We are the 5th richest nation on earth and it is partly our failed foreign policy that has left Afghanistan in this crisis. We should be seeking to home the 20,000 faster.

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council has announced it will work to provide five homes to refugees from Afghanistan within one year.

While this is a step in the right direction, it falls short of what we surely must be able to offer in our wonderful borough.

Just up the road in Conservative-led Ashford, they are aiming provide 10 homes within one year and this is what Labour in Tunbridge Wells is calling for. Historically, Tunbridge Wells is a town with a big heart; proven by its fantastic work housing Spanish Basque and German Jewish children fleeing persecution in the 1930’s, as well as, more recently, Syrian refugee families.

Tunbridge Wells should be leading on this, setting an example. If we offer 10 homes and other councils follow, it will lead to the faster resettlement of 20,000 refugees to the UK. This will save lives and take women, children and heroic interpreters away from the evils of the Taliban. Imagine the pride of seeing an Afghan family drinking tea on the Pantiles, feeding the ducks in Dunorlan or playing in Calverley Grounds.

If you are a local Landlord and think you can help, please contact the Council’s Housing Team on 01892 526121, you can make the difference.

I was glad to see the Times online coverage of Tunbridge Wells Council’s commitment to house five Afghan refugee families.

These are not just people who are fleeing the Taliban; they have supported and served alongside British forces in Afghanistan. This is the absolute least we should be doing for them.

I remember knocking on the door of a Syrian refugee family living in St John’s a few years back. I had no idea they were living in the ward.

Their warm welcome on the doorstep, and their joy at their children attending a nearby school will stay with me for a long time.

Peter Lidstone Lib Dem Councillor for St John’s

The ‘Woke agenda’ is censorship I wonder how many people have noticed that certain media outlets (local and otherwise, but not including your papers) have been influenced by the so-called “woke” agenda, even in their correspondence columns. This seems to apply even when one is replying to something that has already been carried as part of an article in the paper or periodical concerned.

But a ‘letters’ column is not intended to reflect

the editor’s personal opinion, and so one should have the right to reply via the ‘letters’ column when one disagrees with something that has been said in an article or included as part of a news item in the editorial content of the paper.

All too often, though, certain media outlets will not print a letter of this nature if it is perceived to fall foul of the so-called ‘woke’ agenda. Yet these same media outlets quite cheerfully will print a letter about anything else!

Is this really fair? I think that many of us should find a way of getting together to make an effective protest about this sort of censorship.

John Humphrey Tunbridge Wells

Objections to NHS block well-founded With regard to the article in your issue of August 18 concerning the construction of the new student accommodation block at Tunbridge Wells hospital, I am sure that everybody will agree that facilities enabling more doctors to be trained to relieve the shortage caused by Brexit, is praiseworthy.

At the same time, the objections raised by the Pembury Parish Council about the lack of parking space provision for car parking for these students is well founded. Most visitors to the hospital, patients and staff alike will, I think, agree that the penury of parking places is totally unreasonable (as are the confined spaces for modern cars on the existing site).

Since the new building is to be six storeys high, it would seem only reasonable to construct, at the same time, a multi-storey car park of equal height and appearance to accommodate not only the new student doctors’ vehicles but also those who vainly seek a parking place in the present set-up.

Perhaps those responsible for the scheme can be more forward looking and avoid making a bad parking situation worse than it already is.

Alexander Magnus Pembury

PEPPY SAYS...

CARTOON BY PEPPY: (Follow her on Twitter @Peppyscott)

Tunbridge Wells should be setting an example . . .

Mike Tapp, Former Tunbridge Wells Council Candidate in this year. However, I fear that this will be too late and help is needed much more quickly.

These were the closest allies in the United States and United Kingdom’s war against the terrorist threat from Al Qaeda and they gave their lives to help the international community to do so.

So, I would beg you to advocate on their behalf that all those who helped the US and UK in their war against the Taliban as well as Al Qaeda as

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16

NEWS

Education News

FOR EVEN MORE NEWS VISIT: timeslocalnews.co.uk

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

EDUCATION Times Top marks for students’ state of the art science building Tonbridge’s Barton Science Centre wins RIBA Regional Award TONBRIDGE School has received a highly prestigious RIBA Award, with judges commending its ‘brilliant’ Barton Science Centre.

The state-of-the-art, three-storey building was among the winners in the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) South East Awards, an annual competition which celebrates the very best of architecture in the UK. The winning regional projects will now go on to compete for national awards later this year.

scientists,’ had been achieved, and that the centre ‘delivered the very best teaching spaces on every level’.

The awards citation stated: “The Barton Science Centre is the most significant development at the school in more than 130 years. This includes the full refurbishment of the original science building, which is dated 1887 and was the first purpose-built science centre in the country.

“The Barton Science Centre plays a huge role at Tonbridge, placing us at the forefront of teaching and learning in modern science”

“Overall, this is a brilliant new science building with a respectful and intelligent approach to the refurbishment of the existing building.”

The three main levels are dedicated to, respectively, Physics, Biology and Chemistry, with other features including an interactive periodic table, a roof garden and greenhouse, a giant TV wall, three libraries and an observation hive for studying bees. It is also the venue for Tonbridge’s popular ‘Science for Schools’ days for local primary pupils, and also hosts public lectures and a variety of other events.

The Barton Science Centre was officially opened in March 2019 by NASA astronauts and former International Space Station Commanders Dr Michael Foale CBE and Dr Steve Swanson.

James Priory, Headmaster of Tonbridge School, said: “RIBA Awards are renowned across the world and we are delighted to be named among

The Barton Science Centre was originally included in the shortlist for the South East RIBA Regional Awards 2020. Due to Covid restrictions, judging was delayed until recently, with winners being announced earlier this month.

The building was designed by architectural practice BDP and was funded in part by the many hundreds of donors who contributed to the school’s ‘Excellence for All’ campaign over a period of several years.

RIBA judges found that the purpose of the new space, ‘To inspire a new generation of young

Recognition

the latest winners. The Barton Science Centre plays a huge role at Tonbridge, placing us at the forefront of teaching and learning in modern science, and has an important role as a hub in the community, hosting primary school visits, family days, international student conferences, school competitions and public talks.

“Our award is also recognition of a genuine team effort between the School and its architects (BDP), builders (Baxall Construction) and consultants (Synergy and CTP), all of us inspired by a passion for innovation and for delivering world-class teaching.”

RIBA Awards are given to buildings judged to have national and regional importance and are

regarded internationally as a mark of excellence, recognising the best architecture, architects and research.

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

THE Barton Science Centre is named after former Tonbridge pupil Sir Derek Barton, an organic chemist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1969. The building is described as a blend of the old and the new, combining much of the Victorian architecture of the school’s original science building with a magnificent new extension, innovative classroom layouts and latest technology.

EXCELLENCE The new science block has been lauded for its teaching spaces

GREG CLARK MP ADVICE SURGERIES

If you have an individual problem which you think I can help with or you would like to have a chat about a more general issue, please do get in touch.

I am holding regular advice surgeries – by zoom or telephone. To make an appointment, please call:

01892 519854 or email:

greg.clark.mp @parliament.uk

Hildenborough Church

Hildenborough Church

HILDEN PARK ARE PLATINUM PARTNERS

Hilden Park Accountants Limited are a Xero Platinum Partner. This means that we are in the top 2% of all Xero advisers and are the first to achieve this in the Tonbridge area.

HILDEN PARK ARE PLATINUM PARTNERS Xero is online accounting software that helps you to save time on your paperwork and get paid faster. Log in online anytime, anywhere on your Mac, PC, tablet

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Hilden Park Accountants Limitedoar rpehoaneXteorsoeePulap-ttion-udm Partner. This means that we are in the top 2% of all IXf yeoruonaededviasdevrisceaonndhoawretothgeet ftihrestmtoostaocuht ioefvXeertohifsoriynotuhr ebuTsoinnebssridge area. or are looking to move to Xero then do get in touch.

Xero is online accounting software that helps you to save time on your paperwork and get paid faster. Log in online anytime, anywhere on your Mac, PC, tablet Quote “Times” to receive a or phone to see up-to-date financials. free 12 month Xero subscription* If you wIof uylodulikneeeadnyadhveilcpeoor nadhvoicwe tpolegaestethe most out of Xero f*New or yclient our offer busonly iness contact us on 017o3r2 a8r3e8l8o7o7king to move to Xero then do get in touch.

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If you would like any help or advice please contact us on 01732 838877 Visit our website www.hildenparkaccountants.co.uk @HildenPark

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CONSULTATION

ELECTORAL SYSTEM AND NUMBER OF COUNCILLORS We are undertaking a consultation on two important changes being considered, these are: n CHANGES TO THE ELECTORAL SYSTEM n CHANGES TO THE NUMBER OF COUNCILLORS The consultation closes on Sunday 5 September.

ELECTORAL SYSTEM The Council is considering moving to ‘all out’ elections or to remain with elections ‘by thirds’.

The Council currently uses a ‘by thirds’ electoral system. This means that over four years, elections are held in years one, two and three for a third of the Council each year (16 councillors). In the fourth year County Council elections are held.

Moving to ‘all out elections’ means that over the four-year term, elections would only be held in year one for all councillors at the same time.

There is more information on the benefits of elections ‘by thirds’ and ‘all out’ elections on our website tunbridgewells.gov.uk NUMBER OF COUNCILLORS The Council is considering how many Borough councillors it should have in the future. There are currently 48 Borough councillors in 20 wards. Some wards have one Borough councillor to represent them (such as Capel), whilst others have up to three (such as Pembury).

The elector ratio for the borough is 1,769. This means that on average our councillors represent 1,769 electors each.

Two of our nearest neighbours, Tonbridge and Malling and Maidstone have elector ratios of 1,820 and 2,309 respectively.

There is more information on the role of a councillor and our elector ratio on our website tunbridgewells.gov.uk ABOUT YOU... Please enter the first part of your postcode (for example, TN2) _____ ELECTORAL SYSTEM Which electoral system do you think the Council should have? n All out (where councillors are elected once every four years) n By thirds (where a third of councillors are elected three years out of four) Do you have any comments you would like the Council to take into consideration about the electoral system? _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ NUMBER OF COUNCILLORS Would you like to have: n Fewer councillors (this will save money, but councillors will represent more people) n 48 councillors (this is the same as we currently have) n More councillors (this may cost more money, but councillors will represent a smaller group of people and would take account of a growing population) Please state the reasoning for your choice of councillor numbers _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ SUBMIT YOUR RESPONSES Please send your completed survey to: Jane Clarke, Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, Town Hall, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 1RS Alternatively, you can pop your response in the letterbox at the Town Hall, OR COMPLETE ONLINE AT... tunbridgewells,gov.uk Thank you for taking part in our consultation. The results will be published on our website by late September.

18

NEWS

FOR EVEN MORE NEWS VISIT: timeslocalnews.co.uk

Local News

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

RECRUITMENT

Recruit

with the Times...

Largest circulated newspaper in the area Out every Wednesday Total weekly reach 57,000+

Times of Tunbridge Wells 01892 779 580 or email advertising@onemediauk.co.uk

We are looking for a Gardener for a private household with 57 acres where the duties will include but not limited to the following: Planting new trees, flowers and various plants Maintaining flower beds, shrubs roses & rose beds, hedges and natural woodland; n maintaining grass areas to include mowing, strimming, edging, and renovation tasks n Making sure that all garden equipment is correctly maintained and serviced n Clearing rubbish and litter away from the garden and grounds n Maintain garden paths in a clean and safe condition – including pressure washing, weeding and brooming. n Cleaning and maintaining all statues and garden features n Carry out pruning work, using ladders n Assisting with the minor landscape works You will be working as part of a team of 3 Estates hands. n n

Driving licence essential due to location.

Salary £18,000 Holiday entitlement 22 days + bank holidays.

PM

ltd

Commercial & Residential Property Management

Integra Property Management Causeway House, Chiddingstone Causeway, Tonbridge, Kent, TN11 8JP. Contact: Chantel Tester • 01246 223038 8 Chantel.tester@ipm-ltd.co.uk

LOCAL NEWSPAPERS

WE’RE RECRUITING!

Elite Leisure Collection, formally Markerstudy Leisure, is one of the region’s fastest growing group of companies consisting of five independently owned, award winning, ambitious brands employing over 80 staff. Due to continued growth and exciting new plans we are now recruiting for new superstars to join our teams based in Tunbridge Wells: RECEPTIONIST

Playing a vital role in the everyday operation of our Reception, you will be responsible for creating the first impression for all guests, by greeting them and making them feel welcome. This high profile role requires an excellent customer facing approach with exceptional levels of customer service.Your main focus will be to ensure customer satisfaction, directing guests to their conference or event, checking guests in and out of our accommodation and also managing a high level of email and telephone enquiries. Strong communication and organisation skills are essential.

PART-TIME SALES SUPPORT ASSISTANT (20HRS PER WEEK)

As part of media sales team, this is a results driven and varied sales support role that incorporates sales support and development, relationship management and sales administration. Working in both B2B and B2C sectors, you will support our existing successful sales team to manage/monitor new enquiries, process new contracts, liaise with existing clients whilst providing administrative support to our small but ambitious sales team. To be successful in this role you will need good verbal and written communication, computer literacy with strong administration skills and great attention to detail

CHEF DE PARTIE

An opportunity has arisen for a full-time experienced Chef de Partie to assist in the day to day running of our busy kitchens. The main responsibilities are to manage a section within the kitchen whilst ensuring cleanliness, stock control, organisation and high standards of the section.

You will ensure that all dishes are prepared and cooked according to the specific restaurant standards alongside keeping to the required cleaning schedule and that the cleaning tasks are delegated as appropriate. Previous experience of working in a similar venue/restaurant is required along with a creative passion for food and quality.

HOUSEKEEPER

Under the direction of the Housekeeping Manager and Supervisor, a Housekeeper aims to provide a high quality and efficient service in line with agreed standards of the venue operation, to be responsible for cleaning and tidying the bedrooms and public areas of the venue. The ideal candidate will have previous experience of housekeeping in a busy venue, the ability to work under pressure and a flexible attitude to accommodate customer needs through morning, evening and weekend work, according to venue occupancy.

To apply for any of the above roles please send a covering letter and CV to Lisa McVickers lisa.mcvickers@salomons-estate.com

2021 Christmas at Salomons Estate Tunbridge Wells BrEakFaST WiTh SanTa

SanTa aT SalOmOnS

Friday 24th December

Christmas means one thing, Santa is visiting Salomons Estate!

With presents for all the children why not come and visit Santa Claus and his Elves in our cosy grotto.

Enjoy a festive breakfast experience for the whole family, as Santa and his Elves host a breakfast feast at Salomons Estate.

Fun for all the family featuring Christmas colouring, our Christmas treasure trail with a free child’s hot chocolate & Gingerbread decorating.

£16.00

per person (adult or child)

19th, 20th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd December

Tables available between 8am-11am

Grotto slots available from 10am-5pm

Price includes full English and continental breakfast buffet with gift from Santa for every child.

£15.50

per child Adults free of charge

Booking can only be made online via our website.

ChriSTmaS Day hampEr Christmas Day Lunch prepared by our Executive Chef, delivered fresh to your door, from just

£23.33 per person

The stress free and tasty option for a Christmas feast at home!

A delicious 2 or 3 course traditional family Christmas lunch, for 6 people, supplied ready dressed and prepared for you to easily cook and serve at home.

Each course is supplied ready to cook with easy to follow instructions, leaving you to simply, serve and enjoy.

£140

for 2 courses for 6 people

£180

for 3 courses for 6 people

Collection from Salomons Estate or delivery* within a 5 mile radius on 24th December from 9am to 5pm. *Delivery is an additional £10.

ChriSTmaS Day lunCh

BOxing Day BrunCh

Saturday 25th December

Saturday 26th December

Sit back, relax and enjoy Christmas Day in the stunning surroundings of our picturesque estate. Let us take care of the hard work this Christmas, so you can enjoy your day with loved ones.

Enjoy a four course carvery, including tea/coffee and mini mince pie and a chocolate gift for all the family.

There’s no better way to wrap up your Festive celebrations than indulging in our luxury Boxing Day Brunch.

£85

per adult

£45

Available 10.30am-1pm

£14.50 per person

includes a mimosa and one dish from our brunch menu.

We look forward to seeing you this festive season!

per children aged 12 and under Tables available from 12pm-4pm

COUNTRY HOUSE

To book please email reservations@salomons-estate.com or call 01892 515152

Eight Page Pull-Out Local & Live

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Welcome to

Local & Live August 27th -30th 2021 | FREE ENTRY Calverley Grounds, The Forum, The Black Horse Pub (Camden Road), The Royal Oak Pub and Cassidy’s Bar

By Paul Dunton, Event Organiser hello@localandlive.org

A

fter a Covid enforced hiatus of two years, Local & Live is back in Tunbridge Wells this August Bank Holiday weekend. The free music festival, now in its 16th year, is a regular annual fixture in the town’s cultural calendar. Local & Live has become a popular weekend for picnicking in the park, attracting all generations from young families to the more senior music fans. It features the cream of the region’s original musical talent and artists already confirmed include headliners The Orange Circus, Wake Up Leo and Marie White.

Other renowned local acts include The Steffan James Band, The Ackerleys, Cyrano, The Act, Rob Picazo, The Charlie Rivers Band, Dull Knife, Infrared, Harry Whitty, Zoe The Story Teller, The Frampton Sisters, The Breretons, Wild Horse, Mike Wilton, David Mumford and many more!

Afterparties It begins on the evening of Friday August 27 at 5pm and focuses on a purpose-built stage in Calverley Grounds, the beautiful Decimus Burton-designed park in the town centre. The music continues in the park through Saturday (28th 12noon till 10pm) and Sunday (29th 12noon to 9pm). The Forum will be hosting afterparties every night after the music finishes in Calverley Grounds hosting an array of local bands until late each night and will be the main focus of the festival on the Bank Holiday Monday. Alongside various fringe venues such as Cassidy’s Bar, The Black Horse and more. To accompany the music in Calverley Grounds, there will be two main bars run by The Forum and The George Pub and a selection of local traders PAUL DUNTON offering Founder some great of Local local food and & Live beverages.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch by emailing fundraising@localandlive.org. if you have any sponsorship enquiries or ideas, we would love to hear from you.

Any individual or business can advertise on our giant screen positioned next to the stage in Calverley Grounds, it’s a great way to support the festival with ads starting at just £40. Our crowdfund page is available at www.justgiving.com/localandlivemusic.

Thanks for all your support and interest and roll on Calverley Grounds! Search Local & Live on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or visit www.localandlive.org All the traders will be serving an array of wonderful foods to suit everyone’s tastes.

Rumy’s wonderfully vibrant and colourful face painting will once again be in full force for mums, dads and of course kids!

As the festival has grown in both reputation and size, it now draws visitors from the length and breadth of the UK and Europe. Local & Live brings together a collective audience in the region of 10,00015,000 people to enjoy the music and a relaxed family friendly festival atmosphere over the August Bank Holiday weekend.

Local resident and front man of The Bluetones, Mark Morriss recently gave his official take on the festival. He said: “Local & Live has established itself as an essential hub for uniting musicians and fans of all generations and genres in the area of Tunbridge Wells. We are so lucky to have it.”

Iconic Rock legend, Roger Daltrey CBE of The Who, a long term supporter of the festival, has also prasied the event. He said: “Local & Live is a fantastic platform for independent, original music in Kent & Sussex, long may it continue.”

Local & Live is an official charity, one of its main goals each year is to put on the festival for the local community to enjoy.

SEPTEMBER SHOWS THURSDAY 9TH SEPT 7.30PM

FRIDAY 10TH SEPT 7.00PM

WEDNESDAY 15TH SEPT 7.30PM

CLARE TEAL AND HER TRIO

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST

A PERFECT LIKENESS

FRIDAY 17TH SEPT, 22ND OCT & 12TH NOV 7.30PM

MONDAY 20TH & TUESDAY 21ST SEPT 7.30PM

SATURDAY 25TH & SUNDAY 26TH SEPT

TONBRIDGE COMEDY NIGHTS

THE STRANGE CASE OF DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE

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24

Local & Live Eight Page Pull-Out

Local & Live Listings The Local & Live Music Festival, August 27 -30 2021, FREE ENTRY!!!

Calverley Grounds, The Forum, The Black Horse Pub (Camden Road), The Royal Oak Pub and Cassidy’s Bar

Friday August 27 Calverley Grounds 9.10pm - Wake Up Leo (headline) 8.30pm - Cyrano 7.50pm - All The Above 7.10pm - Wild Horse 6.30pm - Mike Wilton 5.50pm - Riff Raff 5pm - The Hoolie Moolies

Friday August 27 The Tunbridge Wells Forum 10.15pm - The Varlies (headline) 9.25pm - Michael Crowther (formerly Son of Kirk) 8.40pm - Leanie Kaleido 8pm Bill Rutherford

Saturday August 28 Calverley Grounds

9pm - The Orange Circus (headline) 8.10pm - The Breretons 7.40pm - The Frampton Sisters 7.05pm - Steve Hewitt 6.30pm - The Charlie Rivers Band 5.50pm - Code: Marla 5.10pm - Harry Whitty Band 4.35pm - Rob Picazo Band 3.55pm - Soda Prism 3.15pm - David Mumford 2.40pm - Anna Howie 2pm - Bea Everett 1.30pm - Chasing Shadows 1pm - The Act 12.30pm - Chris Parris 12noon - Seb Turner-Moore

Calverley Grounds

8pm - Marie White (headline) 7.15pm - Steffan James Band 6.30pm - Dull Knife 5.55pm - Infrared 5.05pm - Paul Dunton Orchestra 4.30pm - Isabella Coulstock 3.55pm - The Ackerleys 3.15pm - The Lucky 13s 2.35pm - Zoe The Storyteller 2pm - The River Flows 1.30pm - Ryan Weeks 1pm - Coney Island Maybe 12.30pm - B.E.N. 12noon - Kylie

Sunday August 29 The Tunbridge Wells Forum

Saturday August 28 The Tunbridge Wells Forum

11pm - Higgs & The Bosons (headline) 10pm - Duch Jo 9pm - Motor Raider

11pm - Common Buzzards (headline) 10.10pm - Junction 5 - UK Garage Duo 9.15pm - Black Gabanza

Sunday August 29 Cassidy’s Castle Street Stage

Saturday August 28 Cassidy’s Castle Street Stage 5pm - Maverick Turtles 6pm - Ryan Weeks 7pm- The Hysterics 8pm- Kharma and the Devil 9pm - A year in Province (headline)

Sunday August 29

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

6pm act tbc 7pm - Laudez Rose 8pm - Velvet Goldmine 9pm - Riff Raff (headline)

Monday August 30 The Tunbridge Wells Forum 9.30pm - Special Guest Headline 8.20pm - Andy Twyman 7.20pm - Catching Mangoes

6.25pm - The Breaks 5.40pm - Shep 4.50pm - Night Without Sleep 4.05pm - Jez Harley 3.10pm - Paul Gunn Collective 2.20pm - Joanne Louise Parker 1.40pm - Gronk 1pm - Nick Stephens

Monday August 30 The Black Horse Pub, Camden Road 3pm - Not King Cole (headline)

Monday August 30 The Royal Oak Pub, Prospect Road Music from 5pm till close please visit www.localandlive.org for more information Website: www.localandlive.org Facebook and Instagram: @localandlive Twitter : @local_and_live

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Eight Page Pull-Out Local & Live

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

So who is performing at this year’s Local & Live festival?

Hundreds of bands are signed up to perform at Local & Live this weekend, varying from solo singer songwriters to six-piece rock, folk and pop bands.

Here we profile three of the headline acts that will take to the main stage on Calverley Grounds...

Wake up Leo

Who are you, where are you from and how long you have been together?

Wake Up Leo began as a solo project for me (Leo Ulph), who, after a few years of playing covers decided to start writing

some songs to see what happened.

That was about five years ago.

I then recorded them in various London studios but I also needed to go and play them.

So I recruited some likeminded friends and colleagues, who like a similar kind of sound and whom I’d met though other local bands to come and play them with me.

I’m based in West Malling and the others are from Bexleyheath, Medway and Sittingbourne.

FRINGE FIX!

Where has the band been playing up until now?

We’ve played all over the country in the last few years, from venues in Bedford and Norwich, to festivals in Gloucester, supporting artists like Reverend and the Maker, Reef, Bang Bang Romeo, Space and The Fratellis.

We also joined Eagle Eye Cherry for the London Leg of his UK tour at the 02 Islington, which was such an exhilarating and celebratory evening.

BBC Radio has also been very supportive of our music.

Have you played Tunbridge Wells before? And how would you describe the music scene here?

I see Tunbridge Wells as our musical home really. I’ve played all over the place here throughout the years. There are so many great places to perform; from intricate pubs and cafés to a full-on music venue and two theatres.

There’s a real musical culture and heritage here. We recently played to a packed Forum on the first week of it reopening, which was so much fun!

The residents of Tunbridge Wells embrace the idea of a musical scene and for any artist, it’s such a privilege to know that

25

people are interested in watching you play, whatever your style.

How much are you looking forward to playing Local & Live?

Local and Live is always a calendar highlight. Paul does a brilliant job in bringing together the whole town in a musical celebration and that’s great to know when you’re asked to play.

It’s such fun chatting to other artists and music lovers. Strutting your stuff on the stage is why you take up music in the first place. Local & Live has everything you’d want from a three-day festival and is just joyous to perform at. We’re headlining this year, so we’re really excited to put together a few quirky bits to entertain.

What can people expect when they come and see you at the weekend?

Energy. Definitely. I firmly believe that a lot of the draw of live music, as opposed to streaming and listening in general, is being able to see the visual interpretation from the artist and engage with that. We love playing music with each other and I think we put that across in the performance.

I think the songs have a unique atmosphere (and often subject matter) and I’ll encourage everyone to join us on that journey, whether that be jumping around on stage, or slowing down to just take a breath.

Either way, I’m hoping it’ll be a fun shared experience for eveyone involved!

How can fans follow you?

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Local & Live Eight Page Pull-Out

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

The Orange Circus

Who are you, where are you from and how long you have been together?

Americana outfit Orange Circus produces original music that has a wholly unique, fresh sound with a hand in roots, rock and gospel music, and updating traditional songs taken from The Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia.

Where has the band enjoyed playing?

We've been playing on street corners, packed out theatres, festivals and a small intimate session with Bob Harris for Under the Apple Tree on BBC2 .

One of the wonders of playing acoustic instruments is that you can go anywhere

with them and still get a party going. We love the adventure of touring and in the past have done tours in Europe where we'll have a number of gigs booked but also left days open to busk and see what comes our way, it's a great way to meet locals and really get to know a place.

One of the craziest places we've played was on an Easy jet flight to Seville where we had a small tour booked.

We got our instruments out and with the permission of the cabin crew had a jam on the plane and managed to get everyone singing and clapping along.

Favourite festivals we've played have been Black Deer and Cambridge Folk Festival.

How much are you looking forward to playing this weekend’s Local & Live?

We couldn't be more excited to be headlining Local & Live. We've been playing the festival since 2012 and the vibes have always been wonderful with a fantastic sense of community and talent.

Paul Dunton and his team put on an impeccable and really fun event with the best of the best in terms of local acts. It will be our first big festival after a year and a half of not being able to play to live audiences so we’re really excited!

What can people expect when they come and see you at the weekend?

When we come out on stage we give it all.

Expect vocal harmonies, big energy, upbeat rabble rousing, foot stomping music 'Rooted in Bluegrass and UK Folk Music, they're a wonderful bridge across the Atlantic' says Radio 2 legend Bob Harris.

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How can fans follow you?

Website: www.theorangecircus.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/ theorangecircus/ Instagram: @orangecircusband

WYATT PHOTOGRAPHY

Have you played Tunbridge Wells before and if so how would you describe the music scene here?

We have certainly played in Tunbridge Wells before. When we started out we played open mic sessions at The Bedford and were regulars at The Royal Oak before getting to play The Forum and The Grey Lady. Having lived in quite a few cities and towns I would say the music scene in Tunbridge Wells is unique and very supportive with an insane amount of talented bands and solo musicians, I haven't seen anything like it anywhere else.

Eight Page Pull-Out Local & Live

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

27

Marie White

Marie White was the winner of the Glastonbury Emerging Artists award in 2019 and has appeared on its Pyramid stage before thousands of fans How long have you been writing and performing and how would you describe your style and sound?

I started writing in my bedroom aged around 14 or 15. Nobody ever believes me, but you’ll have to just trust me when I say I was terrible! Find my Dad on Facebook for confirmation! I spent many years playing to anyone who would listen, whether that was in a pub or on the streets, I didn’t care, I just wanted to be heard. I would say that over the years there has always been a

Tracey Chapman comparison to my sound (which I’m flattered by!) but now I’m trying to find the perfect balance of using production to emphasise the song as well as my voice.

Could you name some of your main music influences and the artists you aspire to?

I think it’s always tempting to jump to the big names, but in all honesty my main influences are definitely my parents. We

assure you that August 29 will be a night to remember!

Where can people follow you?

You can find me @mariewhitemusic on all socials, although I’m particularly fond of ’The Instagram’ as I call it!

NIGEL MARTN PHOTOGRAPHY

might not always agree on what we do and don’t like, but I’ve grown up with my Dad blaring incredible artists like ELO, Rod Stewart and Elton John out of the car speakers! That’s mainly because he can’t hear, but also because he just loves a great song! I don’t think you can spend your whole childhood listening to timeless music and not be influenced somewhere down the line. My Mum comes from the Soul and Funk world, so I would say that hearing voices like Luther Vandross and Stevie Wonder has always encouraged me to use my voice in ways that other people don’t.

What was playing at Glastonbury like?

I’m still overwhelmed by that whole experience but my favourite show from that weekend was the BBC Introducing stage. I was absolutely terrified, mainly because they were airing the show on the iPlayer, and I forgot to look at the audience for our entire set! As we finished the last song I looked up and everybody was getting ready to leave. I turned to Em who had her phone out to film and she said to me “They’re all standing up for you.” As you can imagine, a standing ovation at the biggest festival in the world is enough to send anybody over the edge!

What can the audience expect when they see you at Local & Live?

They can expect an hour of energy, laughter, many tears, and lots of dancing!

Take that description as you will, but I can

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Pippa Middlehurst on her new book Page 34

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Homes & Interiors

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

31

Know your spacial boundaries...

how a multi-use kitchen can be used for eating, lounging and living

Property Focus

These clever design tips will help you maximise your cooking-cumliving space, however compact

I

N TODAY’S property market, space is a commodity in short supply. From shoeboxsized studio flats in Victorian conversions to ‘snug’, purpose-built semis on suburban estates, people are increasingly finding themselves cooking in mixed-use spaces – ones which sometimes double as dining, living, or even bedrooms.

But however minimal your living space is, several tried and tested tricks can help you make the most out of your kitchen area, without compromising the rest of your home…

1. USE FURNITURE TO DIVIDE SPACES Large items of furniture can provide effective buffer zones between areas that are for eating and areas that are for cooking. Sofas have long been a go-to room divider – providing a clear, functional barrier that doesn’t block the eye line.

Defining the kitchen area by adding a dining table ensures you can cook and socialise at the same time.

2. PUT THE KITCHEN IN THE CORNER Corners are often neglected – partly because right angles can be hard to use – but kitchens are tailor-made to sit snugly in otherwise dead space. Arrange kitchen cupboards and surfaces around a corner to

create a functional, out-of-the-way area where you can cook unimpeded, and leave the floor free for tables, TVs and chairs.

3. HAVE A CLEAR CENTREPIECE Mixed-use spaces can easily start to feel chaotic and lacking in boundaries, but a single, eyecatching centrepiece will help lend the room a sense of focus and order. A dining room table, a multi-piece settee, or a widescreen television are all easy to build a room around if granted a central location, drawing focus away from crowded kitchen surfaces or that large, humming fridge.

4. EMBRACE MINIMALISM Small spaces can easily feel cluttered, and kitchens are magnets for rarely used pieces of bric-a-brac and outmoded appliances. Do you really have space for that almostempty spice rack, never-used pile of cookbooks, or the avocado slicer you received as a Secret Santa gift back in 2016? In your kitchen-cumliving-room-cum-whatever else you’re using it for, the answer is probably no.

5. USE A LIGHT COLOUR PALETTE It’s the oldest rule in the interior designer’s handbook – lighter shades make a room feel airy, bright and breezy, while darker

’They’re not cheap, but kitchen islands can divide a space beautifully’

colours will make it look smaller and more claustrophobic. Go for white, beige or pale greys to create the illusion of space.

6. CONSIDER A KITCHEN ISLAND They’re not cheap, but kitchen islands can divide a space beautifully, doubling as a dining table (if you don’t have one). They can also provide invaluable extra storage space beneath the worktop.

Plus, in today’s modern, minimalist,

IKEA-influenced world, kitchen islands are always on trend.

7. USE LIGHT TO DEMARCATE SPACE It’s not just furniture that can make different parts of a space feel different – accent lighting is a must for mixed-use rooms. Desk lamps and hanging lights can illuminate specific parts of a room, drawing focus or ensuring they feel separate and contrasting.

32

Homes & Interiors

7 of the hottest interior design trends taking off right now…

As the sun starts to set on summer, interior design hub Houzz shines a light on the next big looks. Sam Wylie-Harris reveals more

RECLINING Curves and fluted designs are the in thing right now

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Homes & Interiors

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

W

HEN it comes to trends in the home, it’s safe to say the past 18 months have revolved around desks and workstations – but what next?

“As we move into the latter half of 2021, interiors look set to take a softly, softly approach, with a renewed focus on wellbeing and versatility,” says Amanda Pollard, senior editor for home renovation and design platform, Houzz.co.uk.

To get a feel for what the future holds, Pollard shares what’s popular, and which of these trends design professionals in the Houzz community predict you’ll be seeing more of in the coming months…

1. GOODBYE OPEN-PLAN “As homes have worked harder than ever over the last year, renovators are searching for stylish ways to divide up space for multiple uses,” says Pollard. “Fewer homeowners have been searching for ‘open plan living’ on Houzz this year.

Dutchbone Rumour Room Divider, £197.10 (was £219), Cuckooland “Instead, as people search for ways to find a balance between separation and connection, search terms like ‘internal glass door’, ‘room dividers’ and ‘pocket door’ have seen a rise in interest (up by 109%, 29% and 15% respectively during 2021, compared to 2020).”

2. SPATHROOMS “Bathrooms were already taking a step away from the classic, functional white space, with homeowners making bolder decisions for their wash spaces in recent years. However, 2021 is definitely the year of the ‘spathroom’,” says Pollard, “with homeowners creating spaces that are perfect for a little rest and relaxation.”

Contemporary and chic, these large format tiles mirror precious stones, especially with threads of gold and a shiny surface. Savoy Oro Porcelain Tiles, £73.44 per box (1 box will cover 1.44 metres square), Porcelain Superstore “To create a zen atmosphere, designers are turning to tactile natural materials, with stone, marble and wood all featuring heavily, as well as plenty of plants. We’re even seeing luxurious steam showers, deep Japanese-style soaking baths and ‘smart’ bathrooms cropping up in the most popular photos.”

3. UTILISING UNUSED SPACE “As homes take on more tasks, it’s perhaps not surprising homeowners have been making sure they’re using every inch of theirs. ‘Loft conversion’ saw a massive 107% increase in searches during the first half of the year, compared to the same period in 2020,” Pollard notes.

An added bonus, loft conversions lend themselves perfectly to decorative wallpaper, which accentuates the height and makes a real feature of the eaves. Wisteria in Latte/Slate, £120 per roll, Woodchip & Magnolia A multifunctional space, Pollard says the surge in using up all possible space is happening for a variety of reasons, whether it’s to create a home office, zen relaxation space, playroom or even a guest room that can be called on for any self-isolation needs.

4. COMFORTING COLOURS, EARTHY TONES AND TACTILE TEXTURES “Over the past year, many of us have sought solace in the outdoors, and we’re seeing this translate into design trends, with homeowners favouring shades and materials we associate with the natural world,” adds Pollard.

“Comforting colours such as nudes, beiges and browns are a staple in many of the new featured photos, as well as textures like bouclé.”

Effie Armchair, Ivory White Boucle & Brass, from £349, Cult Furniture Green is also having a moment, particularly in the kitchen, overtaking blue as the hue of choice. “It’s not just the kitchen getting the green treatment though, as the search terms ‘green bathroom’, ‘green living room’ and ‘green bedroom’ have increased in popularity since 2020,” adds Pollard.

COAT’s newest collaboration with Dan Lovatt features a limited-edition paint colour with muted undertones in a ‘grubby greyish green,’ available in a range of COAT’s paint finishes, suitable for indoors and outdoor use.

COAT Paints x Dan Lovatt Darlington Green (Flat Matt, £40 for 2.5L, COAT Paints) works like a dream with neutral accents to channel the mid-century vibe, which is all about reviving old classics – also trending big time.

5. PANELLED SURFACES “Panelling has become more and more popular, up by 48% in searches this year TAKE A SEAT The Effie Armchair, Ivory White Boucle & Brass, from £349

33

– and within the most saved photos on the platform, we’re seeing walls adorned with a variety of styles.”

Surprisingly versatile, Pollard says there’s a style to suit any room or home, from subtle shiplap, traditional shaker styles, or more modern linear cladding designs. Also, interior designers report a rise in enquiries requesting panelling, especially for bedrooms and hallways.

6. CURVES AND FLUTING “With a move towards a more comforting aesthetic, curved and fluted designs are rising in popularity, with designers and architects on Houzz using them to add softness to spaces otherwise filled with hard surfaces.”

Pair of Klara Dining Chairs, Blush Oak-Effect, £149 (other items from a selection), JD Williams Pollard also says archways, rounded furniture and curved kitchen islands all feature heavily within the most popular photos on Houzz this year.

7. OUTDOOR LIVING ROOMS “Where 2020 saw an interest in grow-your-own and gardening tasks, this year it’s all about creating a relaxing outdoor room, with spaces set up for cooking, dining, relaxing and socialising,” notes Pollard. “Recent photos uploaded to Houzz feature cosy garden seating areas, kitted out with rugs, comfortable sofas, layered cushions and heaters.”

Last but not least, Pollard says landscape designers are seeing a spike in enquiries (up by 116% in January versus the same period last year), and report clients are looking to their garden as an extension of their living space to use it into the evening and cooler months. We’re happy to say, the future’s looking bright and beautiful.

Food & Drink

food

34

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Food writer Pippa Middlehurst only wants to eat things from a warming, comforting bowl Which leads Prudence Wade to make tantamen and ramen noodles with the broth obsessed cook

A

s far as working lunches go, homemade noodles swimming in a hot, spicy broth and topped off with pak choi, spring onions, flavoursome mince and chilli oil is certainly a step up from a bland sandwich or sad salad.

Food writer and cookbook author Pippa Middlehurst is teaching me how to make tantanmen with fresh ramen noodles over Zoom – essentially the Japanese version of Sichuan dan dan noodles. The dish is from the Best Home Cook winner’s second book, Bowls & Broths, which tells you exactly what’s inside: warming, comforting recipes full of flavour and spice.

The topic of bowls makes Pippa’s eyes light up. “I just like everything being together and being able to sit with it,” she says matter-of-factly. “One of my pet peeves in life is if you go to an event and there’s a buffet, and you have to sit and eat with the plate off your knee. I hate that so much.

“I like to be settled – it’s ritualistic. I like to be comfy, no restrictive clothing, pyjamas on. This is the ideal, with a bowl of something delicious. I think having variety within the bowl is great ” We start by measuring flour, salt and water for the noodles, and this is where Pippa’s background in molecular biology comes into play. She’s

meticulous with her measurements – and you really need to be, to get the perfect noodles – weighing her water in grams on electronic scales, rather than in a measuring jug, trusting her eye.

Once the extremely dry dough is together (at this moment, I’m glad Pippa is there to guide me – if I had been making this solo I definitely

would’ve been suspicious and added a whole lot more water to bring it together), it’s time to start passing it through the pasta machine. This helps distribute the water throughout the flour, making for bouncier noodles that will fare better swimming in broth.

‘My love for Chinese food began with restaurant meals’

We spend 10 minutes in near silence rolling out the dough, a strangely meditative process. Later, Pippa admits when we came back to compare our finished noodles she “didn’t really know how long I’d been away” – that’s how zen she felt. “It’s the transformation that’s quite satisfying,” she says, referring to the moment your dry dough becomes perfect noodles.

Pippa can’t recall the first time she ate noodles, but she can remember the feeling. “My granddad used to take us for dim sum when we were children,” she reminisces. “So my love for Chinese food began with Chinese restaurant food.” Her first dish “would have been [something] like a chow mein – a classic like that, or Singapore vermicelli noodles”, she says.

But back to the task at hand. Once the noodles are dusted with corn starch and set to one side, it’s time to start on the tantanmen itself. We cook up some

Transformation

Food & Drink

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

mince (beef for her, soy for me) in sweet bean sauce and five spice and get our stock on the go, at which point Pippa reveals the biggest secret of her recipes.

Instead of making a complicated new broth for every dish, Pippa’s hack is to have a freezer full of master stocks.

“I’m not going to make the stock into a specific broth,” she explains. “Instead, what I do is I season my bowl”. The stock then goes on top.

This means that, depending on what she ‘seasons’ her bowl with – for us it’s ground Sichuan peppercorns, light brown sugar, Chinkiang black rice vinegar, soy sauce and Chinese sesame paste – you can have a completely different dish each time.

It’s genius, because I ended up with a deep, flavoursome broth – all from a shop-bought vegetable stock cube and some extra flourishes. We then cook the noodles for just 45 seconds to a minute, then top it all with the mince, pak choi, spring onions

and chilli oil.

In under an hour, I’ve come out with a bowl full of flavour – my partner described it as “fancy Pot Noodle”, which I thought somewhat undersold it.

Pippa is a great teacher – helpful, kind and eager to share her knowledge and love of food. She brings this mentality to everything she does, saying: “Since my business has been growing it’s been really important for me to support the Southeast Asian community and women. In my marketplace online (pippyeats.com/products) I stock female-owned businesses. It’s that Lizzo song where she says, ‘If I’m going to shine everybody’s gonna shine’. It kind of feels like that.”

Bowls & Broths by Pippa Middlehurst is published by Quadrille, priced £16.99.

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35

The thrill of the chill With the summer Bank Holiday weekend on the horizon and rumours of another heatwave Times Drinks Editor James Viner says it’s time to keep your cool and chill some lighter red wines…

REDS are frequently drunk too warm and whites too cold, which means you will miss out on some of the wine’s complexity and aromatic interest. On a warm day, pop a bottle of red in the fridge for twenty minutes before you wish to crack it open. Avoid heavy, oaky and tannic wines – head instead for juicy, fruit-driven styles, with minimal oak and low tannins.

In the summer warmth, even full-bodied reds (restaurant or wine bar staff please take note!) should be chilled fleetingly if they are much above 18°C. For your late August summer drinking pleasure and – should the sun re-emerge from behind the clouds – Bank Holiday BBQ, here are four delicious chillable red wine treats…

When the weather’s hot, they will all love a ten-minute dip in the ice bucket or a half-hour sojourn in the fridge. You’ll notice straightaway how much zipper and fresher they taste.

Anywhere between 10-16°C is fine; you want your bottle to feel cool, not frosty, to the touch.

Try these summery reds chilled down to a more taste bud-thrilling temperature…

1. SUPERMARKET STEAL – A JUICY, LIGHT-BODIED BARGAIN ‘GLOUGLOU’ BEAUJOLAIS FROM ALDI 2018 Pierre Jaurant Limited Edition Beaujolais, Burgundy, France (Aldi, £4.49, 13%) A sappy, light-bodied summer red, ideal for chilling, for under a fiver?

Look no further! Nimble non-Cru Beaujolais is one of your ice bucket’s best red wine mates.

Indeed, it’s virtually impossible to think of a more ideal summery bottle than red Beaujolais. This has the characteristic medley of juicy redcurrant-cherry and red summer-pudding fruit flavours, light tannins and fresh acidity for which the early budding/ripening gamay grape is celebrated.

Punching above its weight and perfect served cool on a warm day (ideally say 10-13°C from a carafe), Aldi’s sappy, giveaway bargain Pierre Jaurant Beaujolais non-Villages is bang on for a scrumptious supper of coq au vin, sausage and mash, roast chicken with new potatoes, cod with lentils or swordfish steaks and it gets my summer party vote. Très gouleyant (easy-drinking) and especially good sipped with cold poached salmon and a salad or a plan or cheese omelette.

Outrageous value for money. Drink sooner rather than later.

2) SUCCULENT, CRUNCHY, BRIGHTLY-FRUITED BEAUJOLAIS BARGAIN FROM TESCO 2020 Tesco Beaujolais Rouge, Alliance des Vignerons de Beaujolais,Burgundy, France (Tesco, £5, 12.5%) Inexpensive chilled picnic (even in the rain) wine ahoy!

If you like cooling, thirstquenching, unoaked bargain reds with moderate alcohol and hardly any tannin at all then look no further. This Tesco bargain is the perfect cheap-as-chips Indian Summer red, with lashings of zingy, silky red cherry, redcurrant and strawberry fruit alongside wisps of earth and graphite,

followed by a seductive violet-scented finish.

Serve chilled on hot days to enhance its thirst-quenching fruit. Super fine on its own, it’s also the sort of everyday French bottle you’ll want to have at your table all summer long and it’ll chill perfectly for brie, camembert, charcuterie, grilled duck, Indian dishes, quiche, roast pork, chargrilled salmon and even Kentish cherries. Simple, yet extremely effective.

Chapeau, Tesco! Just ignore the slightly boring label…

3. AROMATIC, HIGH-ALTITUDE, LATE-RIPENING BOBAL FROM THE EASTERN BOUNDARY OF CASTILLA-LA MANCHA, SPAIN 2019 Extreme Organic Bobal, Altolandon, Manchuela, Spain (Co-op, £10, 14%) Spain is one of Europe’s most mountainous countries. As elsewhere, many of its most excit-ing wines come from regions situated at high altitudes where average temperatures are lower and striking contrasts exist between both winter and summer and day- and night-time temperatures.

Manolo Garrote and Rosalía Molina established their vineyard in 1999 and launched their first vintage (just 5,000 bottles, compared with 150,000 per year now) in 2004. Their vineyards, located on a plateau surrounded by mountains in the village of Landete in Cuenca, east-central Spain, are among Spain’s highest (1,100m). Droughtresistant, thick-skinned, unevenly ripening bobal is Spain’s fourth most-planted grape variety and widely grown in the southeast of Spain. Here you can expect vivid notes of sappy black fruits, herbs, violets, red cherries and raspberries, together with well-managed tannins, a silky texture and a convincing, lengthy finish. Trademark lively acidity gives energy to this charming, crunchy wine. Served very lightly chilled on a warm August day, it’d be a great match for paella or mature hard cheeses.

4) A PALE RED MUST-TRY LATE SUMMER GREEK TREAT 2020 Kompsos Liatiko, Karavitakis Winery, Crete (The Wine Society, £9.95, 13%) What a fabulously tangy, bright and bouncy leftfield purchase from über canny Wine Society buyer Freddy Bulmer! Made from the local, dark-skinned Cretan liatiko grape in the far north-western tip of Greece’s southernmost land, some 25km west of Chania/Haniá, this captivating, pale and lithe red sings with pungent cherry, raspberry, floral and spicy aromas that should appeal to fans of nebbiolo.

But the similarity with the renowned grape of ageworthy Barolo ends there since here the acidity is moderate and the tannins are soft and ripe, even in its youth.

Pure and beguiling, its texture is a silk brocade; pour it after a short spell in the fridge and be smitten like me. A lovely wine with a Greek salad accompanied by skewers of barbecued lamb souvlaki. Buy a bottle and have a liquid holiday this late August. Stin ygeiá sas! Get it. Follow James on Twitter @QuixoticWine

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Health & Wellbeing

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

health & wellbeing

6 women’s hormonal health problems

– and how some lifestyle tweaks could help Women’s health expert Dr Aviva Romm is on a mission to highlight the havoc hormonal imbalances can cause, and help us tackle them DOCTOR’S ORDERS Aviva Romm

MOST women will know that hormones can affect how they feel, but hormone problems go way deeper than just mood swings or period pain.

Plus, they are definitely not something women simply have to put up with.

Women’s health expert Dr Aviva Romm says 80% of women have hormone problems at some point – struggling enough to seek medical help, take medication, or possibly even have surgery.

“Hormone problems are so common, we’ve just come to assume they’re par for the course of being women,” says Romm, author of new book Hormone Intelligence. She says there’s a “hormone epidemic” – with women’s hormones causing problems because they’re out of balance. Many common symptoms women experience, she explains – from migraines to hair thinning, weight gain to brain fog – are related to hormone imbalances.

“It doesn’t have to be this

‘Hormone problems are so common, we’ve just come to assume they’re par for the course of being women’ way,” says Romm. “Taking a holistic approach that includes a hormone-healthy diet, supporting our microbiome health, and getting enough sleep and self-repair time can allow us to go from feeling like our hormones are whipping us around to feeling comfortable and confident in our bodies, while bringing our hormones in alignment with our innate

hormonal blueprint.“ Here are six common hormonal health problems women can experience, plus some lifestyle advice from Romm to help rebalance…

1. MENSTRUAL CYCLE PROBLEMS If you go less than 26 days or more than 34 days between periods, if your period lasts

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HORMONE HEALTHY Food should support the body’s microbiomes

on the outside, often on the ovaries, bowel or pelvis lining. This can start in the teenage years, and is triggered by the menstrual cycle, says Romm. Wherever the endometrial tissue is growing, it thickens, breaks down and sheds, just like the uterus lining does during a period.

But because it’s not growing in the right place, blood gets trapped, leading to the formation of scar tissue and adhesions, which can cause severe and chronic pain, as well as fertility problems.

Romm says endometriosis isn’t just a hormone problem – the inflammation it causes affects immune function too, and women living with it may be at risk of other problems, including eczema, allergies and autoimmune conditions.

“Doctors are missing the diagnosis so often, and in many women for so many years, when catching it early can help prevent and reverse damage,” she says.

6. UTERINE FIBROIDS Fibroids are noncancerous growths of muscle tissue in or outside the uterus, which can sometimes become as large as a grapefruit. They’re not always problematic, but Romm says a third of women have symptoms from fibroids, which may include abnormal bleeding, pelvic pain, and increased need to urinate. She points out that fibroids are the most common cause of hysterectomies after cancer. “They’re another vital sign that something is up with your hormonal ecosystem, usually imbalances in blood sugar/insulin and elevated oestrogen.”

more than seven days or less than three, or if you have excessively heavy or extremely light periods, Romm says you technically could have an irregular cycle.

If the changes can’t be explained by other factors, or continue for more than three consecutive months, she suggests they need investigating. Plus, she points out, if women have had an irregular cycle for a long time, “there’s a good chance you have an underlying hormone imbalance, or it’s quite possible that you have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) or endometriosis.”

2. PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME (PMS) Romm says more than 150 physical, behavioural, emotional and cognitive symptoms have been attributed to PMS, including mood swings, anxiety, depression, change in appetite, sleeping too much or too little, and bloating. Yet the exact physiological causes are still unknown, although it’s thought to be linked to hormone imbalance.

“What we do know,” she says, “is that many factors have been shown to increase a woman’s risk of having PMS, and nutritional, lifestyle and other approaches have been proven to reduce or stop it.”

3. MENSTRUAL MIGRAINES Although up to 70% of women who have migraines experience the menstrual type as well, Romm explains that some only have the menstrual type, caused by dramatic drops in oestrogen when levels have been high after ovulation, and before a period.

“Compared with non-menstrual migraines, the menstrual type tends to be more severe, lasts longer, and is less responsive to usual acute medication therapies,” she says.

4. POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME (PCOS) It’s thought PCOS may affect around 10% of women of childbearing age, although up to half may be undiagnosed, says Romm.

It occurs when insulin triggers the ovaries,

while inhibiting the production of a protein which carries hormones including testosterone and oestrogen through the bloodstream. This leads to an increase of testosterone in the circulation, causing symptoms including weight gain, irregular periods, fertility problems, acne, hair loss, and hair growth in unwanted places.

Women with PCOS are also at higher risk of developing conditions like diabetes, cholesterol abnormalities and heart disease. “It’s a big deal not to be glossed over or treated simply with a pharmaceutical,” stresses Romm.

5. ENDOMETRIOSIS In endometriosis, tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus – the endometrium – grows

Three ways to help balance your hormones: If you are concerned about any hormonal issues consult your doctor for advice. Treating hormone-related health issues isn’t always one-size-fits all, however here are three things Dr Romm says can be useful.

•Try the Hormone Intelligence Diet “What you eat – or don’t – has a profound effect on your hormonal health,” explains Romm, who says women can help balance their hormones by eating one serving of protein (poultry, lowmercury fish, eggs, legumes), a healthy fat (like avocado/olive oil/ghee) and two servings of vegetables at every meal. She also recommends six to eight servings of vegetables a day, and up to two servings of fruit, one to two servings of slow carbs like grains, plus some nuts and seeds

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– and make sure you’re eating a wide variety of different coloured foods.

•Reset your body clock Romm says irregular and lost sleep, plus sleeping in unnatural light, sound or temperature, leads to desynchronisation of the internal clock which keeps our hormones ticking. “Your female hormonal physiology is deeply entrained to your circadian timing system,” says Romm, explaining that loss of circadian rhythm affects ovarian hormone production.

To reset, aim for seven to nine hours of good quality sleep each night, going to bed and getting up at roughly the same time, staying off electronic devices first thing in the morning and before bed, getting as much daylight as possible, eating healthily and at consistent times, and listening to your body clock, so when you feel you have less energy, rest or at least slow down if you can.

•Take steps to manage stress Signs that stress is affecting your hormones include sleep problems and fatigue, brain fog, extra weight around your middle, and back, neck, shoulder and/or jaw pain.

“Even relatively short stretches of stress can impact your sex hormones and cycles,” says Romm. “The latest research on stress shows powerful links to irregular periods, menstrual pain, PMS, endometriosis, fertility challenges, PCOS and more. We have to take a radical, proactive stand in favour of our health by getting out of a chronic stress mindset and into one that intentionally invites inner calm and a slower, more rhythmic, natural pace of life,” she adds.

How? Romm’s suggestions include assessing your priorities, and “paying attention to your inner landscape” by asking yourself how you feel, then trying to relax through mindfulness, having a bath, yoga, dancing, or anything else that calms you down. “If you want to bring hormone health back into your life, reducing stress has got to be a commitment,” she says.

Hormone Intelligence: The Complete Guide To Calming Hormone Chaos And Restoring Your Body’s Natural Blueprint For Well-Being

by Aviva Romm is published by HarperOne, priced £20. Available now.

Arts

arts

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Wednesday August 25 | 2021

“Writing a book has been the stuff of my dreams…”

Local author Sonia Velton’s second book, The Image of Her, has just been published. It is a literary thriller about two women who never meet yet share a very close bond. Eileen Leahy discovers more about the plot, what inspired it and why Sonia swapped practicing law for writing literature…

S

TELLA AND CONNIE live completely different lives, thousands of miles apart, but they share a poignant, and totally unexpected, common destiny.

That is the intriguing plotline to local author Sonia Velton’s latest novel which has just been published by Quercus Books.

Sonia, a qualified solicitor, turned to writing full-time a few years ago when she moved to Tunbridge Wells with her husband to bring up their three children after having lived in Dubai for eight years.

The Image of Her is Sonia’s second book but unlike her historical debut, the book falls under the fiction category yet interestingly its roots are in something that happened in real life.

“A few years ago I heard something that made me stop what I was doing and listen,” explains Sonia.

“It was a story on the news about two women whose lives had intersected in the most astonishing of ways. You may have heard it too – perhaps you even found it a little disturbing to listen to – but you probably soon forgot all about it and got on with whatever it was you were doing.

But I couldn’t forget it. I kept thinking about these women and their impossible connection.”

Sonia goes on to tell me that when she heard this fascinating news item her first book Blackberry and Wild Rose, had just

been published.

“It was about a household of master silk weavers in eighteenth century Spitalfields, and I was busy planning my next historical fiction novel. I really tried to focus on corsets and chamber pots, but every time I sat down to write, another story entirely

“I don’t think we ever really regret having the courage to tell the story that’s in our hearts” kept coming into my mind based on what I had heard on the news.”

Sonia says she instinctively knew then that she wanted to write a book about two women, unknown to each other and living completely separate lives, who were destined to come together in the same heartbreaking, yet awe-inspiring way.

“The usual advice to writers contemplating their second book is to ‘write the same but different’ so even though the idea was really compelling to me, I still hesitated to actually write it. Did I want to risk changing genres and possibly sabotaging my writing career when it had only just begun?”

Sonia admits that like many people it took her years to get published. She wrote

as a hobby, first around her job as a solicitor and then later around caring for her three children, but she reveals she was crippled by self-doubt and struggled to justify taking time away from her family to spend it on what might turn out to be ‘just a pipe dream’.

Focus But it wasn’t until she returned to the UK, after eight years living in Dubai, that she really began to focus on writing.

“The children were growing up and were now all at school. We were finally settled somewhere lovely – a leafy part of beautiful Tunbridge Wells, with good schools nearby and surrounded by the elegant Georgian architecture that I love so much – and I really didn’t have any excuses left.

“I entered the first 20 thousand words of my first novel into the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize and was both shocked and thrilled when I was shortlisted. The shortlisting gave me the confidence that I’d been lacking. I finished the book, took a deep breath,

and submitted it to my ‘dream agent’, Juliet Mushens who has published Richard Osman and Abigail Dean. A few weeks later, on Valentine’s Day, Juliet offered me representation and then a book deal with Quercus Books followed. It really was the stuff of dreams. Looking back, I wish I’d believed in myself more from the beginning.”

So, when it came to the idea for her second book, Sonia says that’s exactly what she did.

“I trusted that I had a good idea, even though it was in a different genre, and even though the subject matter was a little bit challenging, a little bit outré even. I’m glad I did; I don’t think we ever really regret following our dreams or having the courage to tell the story that’s in our hearts, asking to be told.”

AUTHOR Sonia Velton, whose second book has just been published

“I kept thinking about these women and their impossible connection”

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Gardening

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

10 bulbs to plant this autumn for a stunning spring and summer display

gardening

Hannah Stephenson chooses eye-catching bulbs to plant soon for a riot of colour next year

S

UDDENLY it’s bulb planting time, when gardeners start making space for some serious colour next spring and beyond.

Whether you’re going to online specialists, nurseries or your local garden centre, there should be a cornucopia of colourful choices and new collections, to fill every space from a huge plot to just a patio pot.

Check out 10 of the best…

1. Iris reticulata ‘Spot On’ (10 bulbs, £3.90, Farmer Gracy; farmergracy. co.uk) These pint-sized velvety beauties bring a wow factor in pots and rockeries, where their delicate but dramatic violet-purple standards, and striped and spotted white falls can be appreciated. They look stunning in shallow metal containers surrounded by matching blue and white violas, flowering in early spring. Place them in sandy soil in full sun to give them the best chance of success, although they will take partial shade.

2. Delft Pot Collection (£20, Broadleigh Bulbs; broadleighbulbs.co.uk) If you love a haze of blue and white and are looking to fill a pot or two, this new collection of blue hyacinths, white anemones and creamy tulips, along with other cool and striking bulbs, should fit the bill. Designed for a 12-14in pot, the long lasting collection includes Hyacinth ‘Blue Jacket’, Anemone blanda ‘White Splendour’, Muscari ‘armeniaicum’, Narcissus ‘Toto’ and Tulip ‘Exotic Emperor’.

3. Tulipa ‘Fly Away’ (8 bulbs, £6.99, Suttons; suttons.co.uk)

GREEN FINGERS It is the time of year gardeners look to planting bulbs

New to the Suttons bulb range, this sizzling tulip produces distinctive red and hot orange-yellow blooms on sturdy, upright stems that create a fiery colour statement in any garden. Best planted in full sun or

‘Unusual two-tone makes a change from the regular purple or white muscari’ semi-shade, these lily-flowered eyecatching gems grow to around 50cm (20in), flowering from April to May. They’re ideal for beds and borders or in pots on the patio.

Cut some for indoors to make a beautiful spring flower arrangement.

4. Muscari ‘Grape Ice’ (8 bulbs, £4.99, Taylors Bulbs; taylors-bulbs.com) Fancy a change from regular purple or white muscari? Then you could plump for this unusual two-tone variety, which features purple flowers with white caps.

On the RHS Perfect for Pollinators list, they flower in March and April, growing to 15cm. Grow them en masse for best effect, preferably in a plethora of pots where their diminutive stature won’t be drowned out by anything else.

5. Narcissus ‘Cassata’ (10 bulbs, £7.99, Crocus, crocus.co.uk) New from Crocus, these split corona daffodils provide a creamy backdrop of outer petals contrasting with deeper lemon inner petals and have received the RHS Award of Garden Merit. They grow to

between 12-14cm, flowering from March to April. Plant the bulbs 10-15cm (4-6in) deep from late summer to early autumn.

6. Narcissus ‘Miss Muffet’ (5 bulbs, £3.10, Broadleigh Bulbs; broadleighbulbs.co.uk) Flowering in February and March and growing to 28cm (11 in), this new dwarf trumpet daffodil from Broadleigh is pure yellow and is brilliant for naturalising, perfect in pots to perk up your patio and also great if you have space to fill at the front of the border.

7. Tulipa ‘Pretty Love’ (8 bulbs, £3.99, Taylors Bulbs; taylors-bulbs.com) This beautiful lily-flowered tulip grows to 50cm (20in) and produces striking fluted shaped bright pink flowers which bloom

Gardening

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

in late April and early May. They look fabulous as stand-alone specimens in a pot or in a mixed planting scheme in a border. Their long-lasting blooms are also great for cutting.

8. Scilla peruviana ‘Sapphire Blue’ (2 plus 1 free bulb, £19.98, Crocus; crocus.co.uk) Also known as Portuguese squill bulbs or hyacinths of Peru, these beauties produce masses of amethyst blue flowers above stout stems, thriving in full sun or partial shade. They are perfect for brightening beds, front borders and containers with their sprays of blue flowers.

9. Ranunculus ‘Picotee Cafe’ (10 bulbs, £5.90, Farmer Gracy; farmergracy.co.uk) If you’re after more unusual bulbs with rich colours, try these stunning Persian buttercups whose frilly peony-shaped double blooms appear in warm shades of orange, gold, bronze, terracotta, coffee and chocolate. While they are ideally planted in autumn in mild areas, if you live in a cold spot you may need to provide some protection during hard frosts, covering pots in horticultural fleece or placing polytunnels over those planted in the ground.

Alternatively plant them in early spring for later blooms, which will come into their own in summer when other spring blooms have faded.

The stems reach around 30cm, so will fit well in the front of the border or in containers. Originally bred for the cut flower trade, the blooms are bigger than more common ranunculus and do well in vases if you want to cut some for indoors.

10. Lilium ‘Orange Marmalade’ (2 bulbs £4.99, Taylors Bulbs; taylors-bulbs.com) Nothing like the showy pink and cream oriental lilies which are familiar figures in borders and pots in late summer, this vibrant orange hybrid, a new addition to the Taylors range, grows to 80cm (32in), producing dainty star-shaped fragrant flowers in summer. What’s different is that the flowerheads are much smaller than some of the showier lilies, but can multiply to 30 or more stems per head.

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Going Out

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

goingout 7 days of activities

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By Daisy Rich-Overall

LOCAL & LIVE Hundreds of acts will perform in Tunbridge Wells this weekend FESTIVAL IN THE WOODS AWARD-winning electronic music festival Alfresco returns to Cranbrook Park, Tunbridge Wells on August 27-29.

Returning to Cranbrook Woods, the site of their first-ever festival, the Kent landscape provides the perfect backdrop for a weekend of escapism.

Some of the world’s best DJs ignite the magical woods with performances from Daniel Avery, Paranoid London, Crazy P, Idjut Boys, Daniele Baldelli, and many more.

When night falls, the party moves from the moon-dappled lakes to the enchanting circus big tops, with the dance party continuing all through the night.

The woods will be scattered with food stalls, from Asian, West Indian, Italian, and more to tantalise your taste buds.

The festival proudly caters to everyone, from families with young children to groups and even dogs, stating that you make the celebration so special.

Day and weekend tickets are available at alfrescofestival.co.uk/tickets WEEKEND OF FREE LIVE MUSIC LOCAL & Live is back on August 27-29 to celebrate the best of live music and culture in the historic Calverley Grounds.

As it is toasting its fifteenth year, the two-day festival is boasting its best year yet.

In 2019, Local & Live officially became a charity aiming to support, encourage and nurture local music and culture.

The event’s founder Paul Dunton is on a mission ‘to promote public appreciation of and education in the arts and music by delivering a ALL THE FUN Craft Fair on Southborough Common

free to attend community festival.’

Wake Up Leo headline on August 27 - their music has been titled ‘the anthems of the future’

by BBC Radio Kent.

The Bluegrass/Americana group The Orange Circus Band are headlining on August 28, guaranteeing wild playing, beautiful harmonies and boundless energy.

Winner of the Glastonbury ‘Emerging Talent Competition’ in 2019, and proud owner of a record deal with Dacca Records in 2020, Marie White will headline on August 29.

Come and join them all in the summer party of the year!

The festival is free to attend, but if you want to show your support, please donate on their JustGiving Page on their website https:// localandlive.org.

MIND, BODY AND SPIRIT WELLBEING festival, The Golden Path, will extend over two days on August 25-26 in Colebrook Park to connect mind, body and spirit.

Spend two days besides an enchanting lakeside and submerged in woodland, focusing on your wellbeing.

The festival will host various yoga sessions, soul medicine sessions, strength Pilates, essential oils workshops, soul mythic tarot reading, creative writing workshops and live music.

Whether it’s a warrior dance workshop you’re after or just getting covered in eco-glitter by the Glitter Fairy, this festival will get you feeling freer than ever.

There will be an array of vegan food stalls to

fuel you through your journey of self-care.

Ticket prices start at £24.75 and can be found at skiddle.com when you search for “The Golden Path (Wellbeing Festival) Tickets”

opening the event at 10 am, and it will continue throughout the day until 5 pm.

Free car parking is available with facilities kindly provided by Meadows School.

PUB PARTY SPICE up your bank holiday weekend with the Summer Party hosted in The Imperial Pub, Southborough, on August 28.

Join LG Discos for an evening of funk, soul, disco and throwbacks in the Imperial pub garden.

LG Discos will be returning to their local pub after a summer of performing at the Live Forever festival and Pitcher and Piano.

Who says you need to wait until the new year to dance the night away?

This will be the best free party this side of 2021, so make sure you get your blue suede shoes on.

The party will start at 7 pm, and entry is free.

POETRY FESTIVAL ‘POETRY for Those That Think They Can’t’, the newcomers’ poetry workshop, will be hosted by Helen Stockton at The Hub, Grosvenor and Hilbert Park on August 25.

As part of the Tunbridge Wells Poetry Festival, this is a chance for all poetry novices to give the art form a shot.

This workshop is an opportunity to better understand how poetry works, whether for yourself, to help others with their studies, or to write. Helen Stockton will address the basics: what poetry is, rhyme, meter, rhythm, form, and how best to utilise them.

You will look at some common poetic devices and have a go at a simple poem yourself, all in it’s a friendly, fun and supportive environment.

Helen is an experienced author and poet, most renowned for her books written from the perspective of her Border Terriers, which can be found at any local Waterstones.

Helen aims to demystify poetry for others and spread joy. There will be tea and coffee available at the event.

For details about the event, contact: stocktonwriting@gmail.com The event is held at The Hub, a community space behind the café in Grosvenor and Hilbert Park, Tunbridge Wells, from 7:30-9:30 pm.

The event’s tickets and details can be found on Eventbrite when you search “Poetry for Those That Think They Can’t.”

CRAFT FAIR LOCAL artists will be showcasing their wares at Meadows School, Southborough, on August 28.

Southborough & District Lions Club presents the Art & Craft Fair on the Common again this year.

This is your opportunity to support over twenty local artists exhibiting their paintings and crafts on forty-two panels to be viewed and purchased.

Southborough & District Lions Club was formed in 1981 to support less fortunate members of the community.

This fun event which will all the family will enjoy boasts many local artists - many of whom have showcased their works for at least 20 years.

Dianne Hill, Mayor of Southborough, will be

POET’S CORNER Helen Stockton

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Travel

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Where to find relaxed country manor chic in the heart of the Cotswolds...

With new owners, fresh interiors and a warm welcome, Grade II listed Burleigh Court makes for an ideal Cotswolds escape, says Abi Jackson

travel

M

Y ONLY knowledge of croquet comes from Alice In Wonderland. Unlike Lewis Carroll’s fantastical scene, however, at Burleigh Court Hotel, we don’t have live flamingos as mallets and curled hedgehogs for balls. Still, as my girlfriend and I enjoy a pre-dinner match on the lawn, there is certainly a hint of storybook charm.

A Grade II listed 19th century manor house in the heart of the Cotswolds, Burleigh Court is nestled on a hillside above the market town of Minchinhampton, overlooking Stroud’s golden valley. Ivy and pink roses creep up its weathered Cotswold-stone walls and there’s a delightfully dishevelled edge to its gardens and four-acre grounds, with flower-lined paths and shadowed crannies tucked behind hedges, begging to be explored.

In fact, a wander around the grounds – there’s a kitchen garden and art deco

plunge pool out the back, and hammocks out on the lawn – is a great way to build up an appetite. Or you could simply enjoy an aperitif on the terrace. Thankfully for us, here for a relaxed weekend break, there’s time for all three – and an Aperol spritz in the earlyevening sunshine, soaking up the valley views, takes the sting out of being thrashed at croquet.

Husband and wife team James and Corinna Rae took ownership of Burleigh Court in March 2019.

They were “two people getting tired of London and wanting to do something different with our lives,” says Corinna, with no previous hotel experience (James was in banking and Corinna worked with human rights organisations) but lots of ideas and a clear aim. “Country charm with a touch of luxury,” explains Corinna. “And a ‘home away from home’ feel with an emphasis on hosting.”

Their first task was embarking on a phased refurb. The hotel already had a bit of a loyal client base, but the Raes had their work cut out to achieve the style and

“Could you manage without your ‘phone? Without power?”

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Travel

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

together on the back terrace, chatting like old friends and tucking into colourful plates with ingredients freshly plucked from the kitchen garden. I have a forager’s salad followed by risotto with broccoli, peas and foraged leaves.

One session isn’t enough to transform you into a fully-fledged forager ready to live off the land – but a morning immersed in nature, chatting, learning and braving the odd taste along the way is a great way to spend the day.

Mountain

chic-yet-relaxed ethos they envisioned. “There was a lot of ripping up carpets!” notes Corinna, who says a lot of the items they brought in were family antiques.

Little did they know a global pandemic was around the corner, bringing the travel industry to a halt. Despite the challenges, Corinna and James embraced the opportunity to connect with the local community during lockdown, selling veg boxes, afternoon teas and takeaways.

In a way, it enabled them to lay their roots with an even deeper appreciation of the area and build on their goal of keeping things as local and sustainable as possible – sourcing meat and produce from farms and suppliers within a 30-mile radius, as well as their own garden kitchen. Now, they’re “in a good place”, says Corinna. They still have ideas they plan to introduce – like morning yoga sessions – but there’s already plenty to entice guests and bookings have been rolling in fast.

We’ve timed our visit for the launch of their Wild Foodie Foraging experience, which anyone staying at the hotel and non-guests can book

onto (check their website for dates of future events). Professional forager Martin Bailey leads our group of ten. We begin in the gardens, with a brief introduction to foraging sensibly and the importance of being absolutely certain something’s safe before eating it (“Don’t much on a hunch!”), before heading up the road.

‘It was a dinner where you can’t stop talking about how good your food is’ An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the Cotswolds is fervent foraging ground. We soon find ourselves on a sweeping meadow, scattered with wildflowers, shrubs and elderflower trees.

Martin helps us identify some species – we spot three-cornered leek (from the garlic family), broad leaf plantain, yarrow, wild thyme and sorrel and even chew on a few.

After a couple of hours, we head back to Burleigh Court and enjoy a Wild Food Lunch

This area has loads of scenic walks, with plenty of options whether you’re a full-day hiker or more of a stroll-to-the-pub type. Other nearby activities you could explore include mountain e-biking and golf, and of course the Cotswolds is famous for its beautiful old towns and villages, with markets, tearooms and cobbled streets galore, for those with a car.

Leave time to switch off and relax at Burleigh Court itself, though, and soak up some country manor chic. Their lounge is an ideal spot for curling up with a book and tea in the day, or a drink in the evening if it gets chilly out (they

SAFELY WITH YOUR CONCESSIONARY PASS Whether you’re out and playing with the grandkids or meeting up with old friends, it’s time to get back out there and explore all the places you love safely with your concessionary bus pass.

Contact your local council for eligibility information and to claim or renew your concessionary pass.

sometimes do jazz nights too). Each of the hotel’s 18 bedrooms are individually designed – including some which are family and dogfriendly, as well as a spacious romantic master with four-poster bed and spa bath.

Corinna and James were determined for the food to be a highlight too. Their historic, oak-panelled restaurant already has two AA rosettes, with seasonal menus designed to champion sustainability with a fine-dining feel – all while keeping the atmosphere relaxed. There are exciting plant-based options (like a pea and potato samosa starter, with balsamic red onions and aubergine caponata), seafood (hand-dived scallops, and delicious pan-fried cot with saffron aioli) plus farm-to-fork meat.

Everything we order is a treat – a dinner where you can’t stop talking about how good your food is, between sips of wine and satisfied sighs, which is handy when the pandemic has stripped us of having much else to talk about!

Thankfully, savouring some silence is easy when you have sweeping valley views, a cocktail in hand and a blazing firepit crackling away, as the sun goes down on the terrace.

HOW TO PLAN YOUR TRIP Weekday B&B stays cost from £119 per night. The Wild Foodie Foraging Experience is available on select dates July-October, costing from £60 per person. To book, call 01453 883 804 or visit burleigh courtcotswolds. co.uk.

GET BACK ONBOARD

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KEEPING YOU SAFE ONBOARD

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Books

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

The bookcase…

Reading has become ever more popular during lockdowns and Covid restrictions. Enjoy this week’s suggested top reads…

FICTION

Sugar by Bernice McFadden

Published in paperback by Vintage Classics, priced £8.99 (ebook £7.99). Available now In a hot, sleepy town full of magnolia trees and the sound of church choirs, Sugar Lacey has eyes popping and gossip flying as she struts into town wearing spiked heels and wild wigs. Bernice McFadden tells a touching story of friendship between the bold, charismatic Sugar and her quiet, Godfearing neighbour Pearl, as Sugar riles the small town of Bigelow, Arkansas and Pearl grieves the brutal murder of her young daughter. Set for British release 21 years after it was published in the United States, Sugar follows expertly crafted characters as they wade through grief, sexism, and the bitter judgement of the 1950s Deep South with warmth and heart. Though a perfect 10/10 score for a book is rare, Sugar is a pageturning novel guaranteed to be looked back on as a timeless classic.

(Review by Emily Chudy)

What Strange Paradise by Omar El Akkad Published in hardback

by Picador, priced £14.99 (ebook £8.49) What Strange Paradise starts with the bodies of refugees washed up on the beach of a Greek island and follows the seemingly miraculous survival of one refugee: nine-year-old Amir. The second novel from Egyptian-Canadian journalist and author Omar El Akkad alternates chapters of ‘Before’ and ‘After’, corresponding with Amir’s time in Syria and Egypt and then on the packed, death-trap

boat heading to Europe and his rescue by local teenager Vanna. What Strange Paradise is an extremely accomplished and moving novel, but also a gripping page-turner as the two children flee the authorities.

It reads as a type of shattered fairy tale – with an ambiguous ending leaving a devastating question mark over the whole tale.

(Laura Paterson)

8/10

Velvet Was The Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

10/10

Times book reviewer

HANNAH KIRSOP

7/10

Published in hardback by Jo Fletcher Books, priced £16.99 (ebook £8.99). Available now Silvia Moreno-Garcia continues the Latin American tradition for noirs in Velvet Was The Night. The story is told from two perspectives: Maite, a lonely secretary whose dull life gets upended when she joins the search for her missing neighbour and gets caught up in the revolutionary cause, and Elvis, a goon for hire who dreams of American music and a better life. The setting of 1970s Mexico City is fascinating, and Moreno-Garcia skilfully weaves in the historical context and political upheaval without taking away from the plot of her story. While the characters feel a bit one-note and the action takes too long to reach a crescendo, it’s still a page-turning read full of colour and action. Similar to MorenoGarcia’s previous novel Mexican Gothic, the style is hammy – in an extremely entertaining way.

(Review by Prudence Wade)

All Our Broken Idols

by Paul Cooper (published by Bloomsbury Publishing, priced £9.99)

A dual timeline novel set in Mosul, the reader is introduced in alternate chapters to Aurya and Sharo, siblings living in Assyria in the reign of King Ashurbanipal, dreaming of a route out of their poverty to a better life in Nineveh, and to Katya, a modern day British-Iraqi archaeologist who

8/10

The Women of Troy

by Pat Barker (Hamish Hamilton. Out 26th August, priced £18.99)

Hannah Kirsop grew up in Kent and now lives in Horsmonden with her family. She loves to read and share recommendations and runs Bainden Book Club for a group of local women to discuss interesting fiction and non-fiction in a range of genres. You can find www.baindenbookshelf.com online or on Instagram: @baindenbookshelf

‘Inside the horse’s gut: heat, darkness, sweat, fear.’ So opens Pat Barker’s ‘The Women of Troy’, her sequel to ‘The Silence of the Girls’.

Following the deaths of Hector and Achilles, the novel opens with one of the most famous set pieces of the Trojan War, the Greeks’ invasion of Troy inside the famed horse.

The immediate immersion into the dark, sweaty and intense atmosphere of the wooden horse, the introduction of Pyrrhus - Achilles’ hot headed and angry sixteen-year-old son - and his subsequent murder of King Priam as retribution for his father’s death quickly drag

has accepted a position at a dig in Mosul both to search for ancient remains and to exorcise the demons of her Iraqi journalist father’s earlier diappearance.

As their stories unfold, threads are sown to bind them together across the centuries, driven as they both are by love, power, art and fear. Incorporating both Iraq’s ancient history and its present-day trauma, this is an innovative novel with a gripping story driving the plot.

9/10

the reader back to Ancient Troy.

The plot is then set for the novel which examines the experience of the Trojan women who have been shared out as spoils among the very different Greek Kings.

A brilliantly unique and entertaining rebranding of a forgotten period within a well-known story.

Motoring News

Wednesday August 25 | 2021

Motoring News

This week… n

The Mini Strip

n

Updates to BMW iX3

n EV charger project

The Mini Strip is a minimalist one-off concept car designed with Paul Smith

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Royal College of Art tasked with making EV chargers as ‘recognisable as red post boxes’ PLUGGING THE GAP Chargers need to be iconic

STRIPES Paul Smith’s bold signature MINI has teamed up with fashion designer Paul Smith to create a one-off, scaled-back model that prioritises sustainability above all else, based on its ‘Electric’ hatchback.

Called the Mini Strip, the brand took a back-to-basics approach, which focused – as its name implies – on stripping back anything that’s not totally necessary.

Starting with a Mini Electric, the car was left in its unfinished state, with the only paint applied being a thin film that protects the car from corrosion. Grinding marks on the steel panels also remain, something Smith calls a “perfect imperfection”. Recycled Perspex has also been used – most notably for the panoramic roof, along with for the grille trim and wheel covers.

Elements of Paul Smith’s bold use of colours include five stripes in the shell of the door, along with a neon green charging flap.

But it’s the interior where things become especially minimalist, with just about all interior

trim removed and leaving the car’s bare shell exposed. The usual large touchscreen in the centre has been ripped out, leaving just an area to keep a smartphone.

Dashboard A host of recycled materials have also been introduced to the cabin, which notably is free of all leather and chrome. The seats and mats are both fully recyclable, while cork features prominently on the dashboard, door cars and parcel shelf. Mini says this material could ‘provide a substitute for foamed plastics in the future’ thanks to its firmness and soft feel.

Even the steering wheel has been stripped back and wrapped in the same tape you’d find on a road bike – a nod to Smith’s love of cycling – while the pull handles for the doors are made from orange climbing rope and help to add a splash of colour to the car’s interior.

The Strip continues Mini’s long-running partnership with Paul Smith, which dates back to the 1990s when the two icons developed a limited-run version of the classic Mini, painted in a shade of Blue designed by Smith.

Speaking of the latest model, Smith said: “I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to rethink the iconic Mini. I know and love the existing car, but by respecting the past and looking to the future we have created something very special.

“I feel very privileged that the Mini team has given me the confidence and freedom to think laterally about the approach to the design of the car. Together, I think we have created something truly unique, by going back to basics, reducing things down and stripping the car.”

Though the Mini Strip will remain as a concept, the British firm says it can be used as a ‘catalyst for more sustainable use of resources in automotive design’.

Facelifted electric BMW iX3 SUV revealed BMW has unveiled the updated version of its electric iX3 SUV, which gains a redesigned front end and more familiar trim levels.

Benefiting from revisions seen on the recentlyupdated X3, the electric iX3 also gains styling hints from BMW’s new i4 and iX EVs. Changes include a larger version of the brand’s renowned kidney grille, which gets the usual accents seen UPGRADE A new front is one of the changes on the iX3

on BMW’s EVs, along with slimmer headlights.

Larger air intakes are also fitted, while the ‘air curtains’ positioned right at the edges of the front bumper get a new L-shape.

BMW has also tweaked the trim levels, with the original Premier Edition and Premier Edition Pro trim levels being replaced by BMW’s more familiar M Sport and M Sport Pro grades on the new car.

To reflect this, the iX3 gets new ‘M’ details such as new side skirts, a more noticeable rear diffuser and greater gloss black styling. Standard equipment also includes 19-inch aerodynamic wheels, an electric boot, adaptive suspension and a panoramic sunroof.

Collaboration The M Sport Pro then adds a head-up display, Harman Kardon sound system and a new ‘electric sound’, which has been developed in collaboration with composer Hans Zimmer.

No changes have been made to the iX3’s powertrain, which combines twin electric motors making 282bhp, with a 74kWh battery for a claimed 281-mile range. It can also charge at up to 150kW, which means that, when using the quickest chargers, the model’s battery can be charged to 80% in just 34 minutes.

Prices for the BMW iX3 start from £59,730 for the M Sport and rise to £62,730 for the ‘Pro’. First deliveries are expected in December 2021. Retail customers will also get a free 12 month subscription to BMW Charging, giving easy access to more than 11,000 charging points across the UK.

THE government has appointed a design team to create an ‘iconic British chargepoint’ for electric vehicles.

The Royal College of Art (RCA) and PA Consulting have been tasked with making the on-street chargers ‘as recognisable as the red post box or black cab’.

Set to be revealed in November in Glasgow at COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference, the chargepoints could begin to pop up across the country from 2022.

Clive Grinyer, head of service design at the RCA, said: “This is an opportunity to support the design of a future icon that will be part of our national culture as we move towards a sustainable future.

“The RCA has been at the forefront of shaping our products, mobility and services for the last 180 years. We are delighted to be playing a role in the design of the total service experience to ensure a usable, beautiful and inclusive design that is an excellent experience for all.

Emission Transport Secretary Grant Shapps added: “Excellent design plays a key role in supporting our transition to zero emission vehicles, which is why I want to see EV chargepoints that are as iconic and recognisable as the British phone box, London bus or black cab.”

The idea behind an ‘iconic’ design is to make chargepoints more recognisable for drivers, which it is hoped will create more awareness around electric vehicles.

Independent statistics from electric vehicle chargepoint mapping service Zap Map shows there are now over 25,000 public charging devices across the UK. In July, official data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders showed electric vehicles represented one-sixth of sales in the month, while the year-to-date numbers were more than double what was seen last year.