Joy of murmuration

Local champions

FROM our flat we overlook the tower of Crescent Road multi-storey car park.

Over several years we have watched ivy creep up the tower, reaching the top last summer. Equally over this time we have had the extreme pleasure of watch a murmuration of starlings at sunset. The birds swoop and soar in the sky above Calverley Road and the precinct, then suddenly as one they roost – into the ivy!

We were therefore horrified when on Tuesday morning we heard a hedge-cutter and saw a person in a cherry-picker rapidly removing the ivy from the tower.

I dashed to the site to try to halt further destruction of the home of hundreds of birds. The perfectly polite worker told me that he was only carrying out the orders of the Council and no matter how regrettable the action may be, the roots had been severed comprehensively.

If the Council was concerned about the fabric of the tower the ivy should have been controlled a decade ago. It is hugely disappointing to think that the joy of the murmuration may have been lost permanently.

Marilyn Daines Tunbridge Wells

HAVE YOUR SAY:

Each week the Times will run a series of social media polls that ask our readers for their opinions on the Borough’s biggest stories.

To participate in the polls, simply follow the Times on Instagram or Twitter using the handle @timeslocalnews

This week we asked our readers:

WOULD YOU BE HAPPY WITH A FOUR-DAY WEEK?

HAVE YOU BEEN TOLD ‘CASH ONLY’ BY A CABBIE?

I read with interest your reporter’s article regarding a new multi-million pound venture to create six cafés, restaurants and bars where the Hop House and Frankie & Benny’s have been.

I was however taken aback by the references to Frankie & Benny’s being shut since 2020. I like Frankie & Benny’s and always have a meal there following a trip to the cinema. I have visited a number of times since the end of the pandemic. It was certainly not one of 120 restaurants permanently closed by TRG. I like the Times newspaper and find the reporting to be usually very good but on this occasion I am afraid you failed to get your facts correct.

John Roberts

Editor’s note: Last week, as part of a wider story, we said Frankie & Benny’s in Tunbridge Wells is closed. We jumped the gun.It is very much open and will only close once the site is redeveloped after getting planning permission. We work hard to get facts right, but this time round we fell short. Our apologies.

Troublesome turning

Making a three-point turn in Monson Way is nonsense, as is doing one in Monson Road; I’m surprised this is the advice Edward Baker was given by TWBC – last week’s Letters.

So to avoid the possibility of exiting left onto Mount Pleasant, private vehicle drivers needing to do business in the road for quick pickups or drop offs will have to come into it from Mount Pleasant itself by making a round trip to London Road and use Dudley and York Roads or, from the Simmonds end, and turn right into Newton Road. This latter is no more than a quiet service and residential one-way street, now set to become a main route into the town. As Mr Baker rightly states: a right bugger’s muddle.

John Ward Moorhouse

I was enjoying my Sunday run around the local area and found a veritable army of friendly volunteers picking up all of the litter and detritus discarded by our less caring citizens in the Langton Green and Rusthall area.

There were many of them and they were well organised and equipped for their task. No one asked them to do it – they volunteered because they actually care about the area they live in.

They had lots of unpleasant things to dispose of, including urine in bottles, but they went cheerfully about their task.

It’s easy to spot the negative things around us such as graffiti and litter, but where strong community action is a force for positive good, it should be championed, and this seems like a good place to do it.

Bryan Johnston Royal Tunbridge Wells

Honoured to be involved

I have been helping free of charge with conceptual designs for the landscape around the Decimus Burton Museums site. Why?

The site and wide range of topics could lead to it being one of the most valuable public attractions in Britain.

I feel honoured to be involved.

We have only had one International Garden Festival in Liverpool and I won Premiere Prize with The Beatles Maze.

For years I promoted Christian Aid on various campaigns. First one I did at Hampton Court Palace Flower show was seen by one billion people on TV worldwide.

The potential is gi-normous.

Graham Burgess Fellow, Royal Society of Arts

A successful six-month trial sees companies adopt the new working week…

YOU SAID…

YES (89%) I love the idea

NO (11%) I like my work pattern

Residents paying by card are being refused taxis by cabbies in Tunbridge Wells…

YOU SAID…

YES (84%) It happens often

NO (16%) Never had a problem

Wasted funds supplying the vehicles – it says so in the contract that both parties signed.

I read Cllr Everitt’s somewhat hysterical response to my letter that had dared to criticise his administration’s huge financial bail-out of Urbaser.

Perhaps Cllr Everitt should calm down and explain why his Lib Dem, Labour and Alliance administration is making these voluntary payments. Taxpayers seem to be paying more and more for a service that has steadily slipped during his time in charge.

Cllr Matt Bailey, Independent, TWBC Ramadan 2023

Diabetes UK are offering advice and support to anybody living with diabetes who is preparing to fast during Ramadan, to help them manage their condition safely.

We advise people that if they are unwell or have any symptoms of Covid-19 they should not fast and call 111 for further advice.

For more information on diabetes and Ramadan visit: diabetes.org.uk/ramadan

Jill Steaton

South East Coast and London Head, Diabetes UK

Flag-rant mistake

IT’S good to see the Union Jack flying at the War Memorial. However, it seems that this Tunbridge Wells Council can’t get anything right, as it is upside down.

Cllr Everitt concentrated on personal attacks and on blaming others. But he did not answer the serious questions that residents have about his administration’s use of taxpayer funds. People accept that we live in inflationary times and that the Council may have a legal requirement to raise payments on its contracts. But what is confusing people is why the Council is making extra payments on top.

TWBC has agreed to make a voluntary payment of £84,000 to Urbaser towards the cost of drivers. But Urbaser is responsible for supplying staff, and the shortage of HGV drivers as the economy came out of lockdown is now a distant memory.

TWBC is making a further voluntary payment of £150,000 to Urbaser towards the cost of vehicles. Once again, Urbaser is responsible for

Choosing whether to fast is a personal choice and getting information ahead of Ramadan is very important – particularly for people living with diabetes as they are at increased risk of complications. So, ahead of the holy month, which is due to begin on or around March 22 this year, Diabetes UK are encouraging anyone living with diabetes who is preparing for Ramadan to speak to their diabetes team and their Imam, to help them to decide what is best for them.

If you decide to fast during Ramadan, it’s a good idea to include more slowly absorbed foods, such as basmati rice and dhal, along with fruit and vegetables in your meal before starting each day’s fast. It is also important to check your blood sugar levels more often than usual and if they drop too low, you should break your fast.

Anyone knows that flying the Union Jack upside down is a sign of distress. Is this why our council is telling us that it is in trouble?

For goodness sake, Tunbridge Wells Council, get things right for a change.

Lionel Hanmore Sherborne Close

Calverley

Observations on life and more important things

MENTAL HEALTH For the record, Calverley is, for personal reasons, very much aware of mental health issues; the traumas, the challenges and the possible outcomes. Today, though, people are much more open about their problems. Which is great. However, Calverley has also noticed a troubling trend particularly with younger people in the workplace. When asked to take on more responsibilities, for example, they often offer reasons why it might prove difficult and end up with the comment along the lines of: “And, of course, it would be bad for my mental health”. Words that close down any further conversation. Maybe the claim is true; then again maybe not.

LESSONS TO LEARN? There was a bit of a mini-riot last week at a college just down the road from Calverley. A large group of girls invaded the premises, forcing the whole school into lockdown. They were carrying placards, shouting and screaming, turning over bins and allegedly breaking the odd window. Students inside were ‘terrified; many were sitting mock exams. The protest was about the school ban on short skirts with the claim it cared more about a dress code than climate change. Go figure that one. But if schools want students to dress appropriately then maybe teachers should also adhere to a dress code that bans scruffy casual wear, tight-fitting low tops, skin-tight jeans, whacky hair styles and piercings. All on view at the school gates. Just a thought.

A YEAR has already passed since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the hostilities are still ongoing. My husband continues to serve in the armed forces of Ukraine, and today I want to talk about how and why I left Ukraine to save my children.

I carried the children, our things, our memories, pain and fear of the unknown. I changed to survive, and I became different to save myself and my children.

I am now and I am before February 23, 2022. These are two different people. Apparently, I am fearless. Because I was going into the unknown, I didn’t know where we would be tomorrow and what would happen to us, but I went – to save us. My life from before became the past, shattered into pieces, and I took it and started all over again.

I had to learn to build routes in minutes, master new skills, understand and learn a new language, make vital decisions, orient myself in a situation where everything new and unfamiliar.

I was alone. It was me and the children. I was responsible for every decision I made and worked hard for them. But every time I decided –again and again – understanding the risks and going forward. There were new countries, new cities, new roads, new people, but I went and am going forward, because I have children with me and it is not time to be afraid of changes. I accepted them and accept them with an open heart.

But I have felt something that is difficult to describe in words. I solved problems and issues in the way that was best for my children.

My baggage of experience can now be measured in tonnes. I have done so much in this damned year. I carried everything on me: children, my psychological and physical condition. I survived and lived. I walked the path that women of war walk for the first time. Who else but me can figure out how to make money in a foreign country without knowing the language, customs or laws? I managed to find a part-time job, cook food without fire, rent an apartment in a city full of refugees, feed myself and strangers without a penny and find time to be with my children, even when working 24/7.

I’ve been living in another country for almost a year now. I’m learning the language, I’m taking care of my children and myself, and everyone around me. I look 100 per cent because no war will take away my love for beauty. I do everything right, even if I’m told it’s wrong. I am going my own way, changing reality for my children, and I don’t know where I get the strength for this.

I just don’t have a sparkle in my eyes.

HIGH PROFILE Labour Leader Keir Starmer hit the media circuit over the week telling all who would listen how he is going to save the country. Newspapers and TV pundits used various words to describe him, depending where they stood on politics. Calverley believes Keir Starmer can be best described in five words: He is not Jeremy Corbyn. Job done. Election won.

WORKING FROM HOME

As people turn their back on commuting and city centres, so the impact of WFH is being felt across many different levels, including the loss of jobs. Take the case of Paperchase, the gift and stationery chain that fell into administration and saw branch closures such as the one in Tunbridge Wells. The major stores in transport hubs were hard hit with the pandemic and then rail strikes driving away those much-needed commuters who now prefer to stay at home. Good for them. Bad for those who are impacted by the ripple effect.

FINAL THOUGHT As the debate about the gender of Him above rumbles on, surely the Church of England realises that when God created Man, she was only joking. (Letters only please to the Editor.)

Chin, chin dear reader…