Valley Conservation Society
Holder of the KCC Award for Volunteering Excellence
We are ready to serve you!
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Dennis Usmar, Gary Stead and Bryn Cornwell – the three chefs |
Tickets are now on sale for the annual members’ barbecue to be held at The Manor, Hayle
Place. Price £7.50 per adult includes food. Children under 14 free. Book on 01622 751926.
Saturday, July 18 (food served from 5.30pm onwards)
Pond vandals
UNFORTUNATELY a number of youths made a nuisance of themselves on our ponds over the last Bank Holiday. They took a boat onto the water and - lacking oars – pulled up to use as paddles some of the marker sticks inserted by our work party team to measure the reduction in silt levels.
They also took dogs across to the islands where the ducks were nesting. Several broken eggs were later found, although all the existing ducklings seem still to be alive. The yobs – there was a lot of bad language when they were challenged by neighbours - left their boat behind – and the police, who were called but arrived too late, later removed it.
The case of the disappearing silt
AN EXAMINATION of the remaining marker sticks left in our ponds has confirmed what the work party had already noticed for themselves when wading in the water – that the earlier treatment of the ponds with Siltex is working. The silt level has reduced by between 1 and 2.5 inches since it was applied. The team are now convinced that a second application will be worthwhile and are looking at a possible September date.
Date for the diary
THE next “Walk the Valley” event, organized by the Loose Valley Conservation Area Partnership, will be on Saturday, September 19. The event will be a reprise of the walk held early this year which proved so popular – and perhaps give walkers who managed only one leg of the hike last time the chance to try the other. Full details nearer the date.
Safari reminder
A REMINDER that on Sunday, June 28, thirteen Loose gardens that all have the Loose Stream either flowing through them or close by will be opened to the public to raise money for the Ellenor Lions Hospices. There will be free parking in Brooks Field, entrance via Kirkdale. Admission to all 13 gardens is £5 (children 50p) with a map available. It takes place between noon and 5pm.
James Sherwood
OUR show on May 16 was less well attended than usual with only 53 in the audience. Nevertheless, the majority of those present seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves. The evening, with the proceeds from the raffle, just remained solvent – a total of £1.06 was added to our funds!
Try to stay calm
NEWS has just come in that Kent Highways is delaying the start date for traffic-calming measures in the Lower Loose Valley, which are being paid for by Tovil Parish Council. Work was due to begin next week (June 22) but has been put back till July 6 because of “the over-running of existing work elsewhere in Kent.”
Hayle Mill
MAIDSTONE council has approved the application from PJLivesey (MA/09/0597) to discharge it from the planning conditions relating to the company’s development of Hayle Mill, subject only to the proviso that Livesey complete its scheduled landscaping “during the next planting season.”
History trips
THERE will be no talk from the Loose Area History Group this month. Next month, on Monday, July 13, there will be a private visit to a Cold War bunker, here in Maidstone. Entry is £2. Places must be booked in advance by phone to 01622 745036 or by e-mail to noel.gibbons@talktalk.net
Next meeting
THE next meeting of the executive committee will be on Wednesday, July 1, at 7.30pm at Flat 3, The Manor, Hayle Place. Members are always welcome to attend. Call 751926 for directions.
Painting mystery: the plot thickens
OH dear, far from solving the mystery of the painting of the Loose Valley, we seem to be moving farther away from the solution.
Firstly, both Roy Hood of Loose Amenities Association, and Bob Jesshope of Loose Swiss Scouts,
have taken issue with our chairman Bryn Cornwell’s view that the Victorian painting entitled “Loose Valley” that recently surfaced in Hertfordshire is a romantic depiction of Heron Pond, although neither could offer an opinion of the true location. Bob believes that in 1868, the date on the back of the painting, there would have been more sign of the use of the Valley as a ragstone quarry, which should have been evidenced in the painting by steeply sloping valley sides.
An appeal for information in the Kent Messenger led to suggestions that the mysterious artist –the initials on the back of the picture are AGC – was one Arthur George Cruttenden.
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The heirloom painting |
An elderly Teston resident, Leslie Baldock, recalls as a young boy helping his grandfather, one A.George Cruttenden who ran an artists’ workshop in Maidstone. Mr Baldock believes he may have seen this very picture in his uncle’s shop.
A copy of the 1901 census shows George Cruttenden, aged 51, living with his wife Lucy, also 51, at 9 Union Street, Maidstone. Mr Cruttenden’s profession is given as picture-framer – and his place of birth as Goudhurst. The Goudhurst parish records show a number of Arthur Cruttendens born in the village. It was common practice in those days for father and son to be given the same Christian name, but for the son to be commonly called by his second name to avoid confusion.
It is possible therefore that at some time, “AGC” framed or reframed the picture – and that the painting was actually the work of some other, still anonymous, artist. So, ideas on a postcard please… or call Alan on 01622 751926.
More memories
THE internet is a wonderful thing. The Loose Valley painting was brought to us by Carolyn Nobel from Hertfordshire who inherited it from her parents and wanted to find out more about its provenance. She contacted the Society for help after coming across our website.
Now we have been contacted by William and Valerie Head, who live in Georgia, in the United States. They were researching Hayle Place on the internet because Valerie’s parents, Charles and Gladys Burnham, used to live there in the 1980s. They were so taken with the photograph of the Manor House taken during our summer barbecue there last year that they emailed to ask for a copy that they could frame.
Our membership secretary, Colin Holman, who lives at The Manor today, said: “I remember Charles and Gladys Burnham very well. They were living in Flat No.1.when I originally came to live at ‘The Manor’ in 1981 and were then in their early 80’s.
“Charles used to cut the lawn and keep the grounds as tidy as possible – I can still see him sitting in the summer house smoking his pipe during a warm summer’s evening, with a cup of tea by his side. Very often I joined him for a chat and a cup of tea.
“They were very nice people, but unfortunately they both died within a year or so of each other a few years after my arrival. A pseudo acacia (locust) tree was planted in the grounds to commemorate them.”
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THE Tuesday work party continues. The gang are currently investigating the possibility of renewing the fencing alongside the border of Reeds pond with the pathway leading up to Mount Ararat. Bryn is consulting with the council’s conservation officer on what would be the most appropriate type of fencing to replace the existing (in places) barbed wire topped industrial fencing.
Of course there is always room for more to join the work party. They meet every week at 11am. Call Bryn on 746514 for details.
*There are two active Kingfisher nesting holes in Treacle Woods.
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East Farleigh Parish Plan
THERE was a reception at the East Farleigh Club on Saturday, June 13, to mark the launch of the East Farleigh Parish Plan.
Produced in about 18 months, the plan has already achieved one of its main objectives – to draw the community together. Around a third of all villagers attended the original consultation meetings, and there was a 60 per cent response to an all-village questionnaire, which must be something of a record.
Glyn Charlton, who is an East Farleigh parish councilor as well as being chairman of Tovil Parish Council, oversaw the project. Chief among villagers’ concerns was traffic: the disruption caused in Vicarage Lane at school times, and speeding traffic through Lower Road and Dean Street.
Scouts march into new hut
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CONGRATULATIONS to the Boughton Monchelsea Scout Troop! They have officially transferred to the new headquarters, named the Slingsby Hut, off Haste Hill Road. The hut, a former agricultural workshop has been renovated and converted with a lot of hard work by dedicated parents and friends of the Troop over the past months.
The Scouts paraded through the village from their old building in Church Hill, where their lease had expired, to the new one before holding an opening ceremony presided over by the Mayor of Maidstone, Cllr Peter Parvin, and the County Commissioner, Kelvin Holford. Around 200 people turned out to watch the Union flag raised at the new hut for the first time.
Election result
THE Kent County Council elections were held on Thursday, June 4. In our division, Maidstone South, the sitting councillor Alan Chell was returned, albeit with a smaller vote than in 2005.
The results were Alan Chell Con 1,897
Clive English Lib Dem 1,222
Richard Coates Lab 341
Stephen Muggeridge Green 305
Sheena Williams Independent 282
Gary Butler Nat Front 231
Cllr Chell can be contacted at 14 Sheppey Road, Maidstone, ME15 9SL
Phone 01622 744796 or email: alan.chell@kent.gov.uk
*One of our three South Ward borough councillors, Ian Chittenden, (Lib Dem) also successfully defended his county council seat in Maidstone North East, which he won in a by-election last July.
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Ragstone walling
OUR chairman Bryn Cornwell and his hearty band of volunteers have been developing their conservation skills - by taking part in a ragstone walling course. An expert travelled up from Hastings to give the boys on-site tuition here in the Valley.
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Ragstone
walling is a particular feature of the Conservation Area, with many of the
stones having been quarried originally in Tovil and in Boughton Monchelsea.
By the time they’ve completed the course, which runs over a three-week period, the gang hope to be able to tackle the many repairs needed.
The course for 10 people has been funded with a Grass Roots grant via the Community Foundation. Ward Cllr Ian Chittenden also made a grant from his devolved budget to pay for the necessary tools. |
| The Quarry at Boughton Monchelsea around 1920 | |
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*Our thanks to members who have donated ragstones from the own gardens to fill the gaps. |
VCS Quiz Night
Saturday, August 15
Admission from
Fantastic ploughman’s supper and desserts
included in the price
£7.50 per head (children £5)
Tickets from Alan on 01622 751926
Are you up for our Quiz Night?
Try these brain-teasers:
1) How many Kings of England have been called Edward?
2) Who shot Liberty Valence? (actor’s name)
3) Who was the second man to walk on the moon?
4) Where might you find a Tum Tum tree? (see last page for answers)
Campaign to Protect Rural England
THE Maidstone branch of the CPRE will hold its annual meeting on Thursday, July 9, at Thurnham Church.
Your Society holds group membership of CPRE, meaning that all VCS members are entitled to go along to the CPRE meeting if they wish.
Thurnham Church is a beautiful Grade II listed building - worth a visit in its own right – but has been chosen as a venue because of its proximity to the site of the proposed Kent International Gateway Project – a road/rail freight interchange at Bearsted that will cover 285 acres of Kentish countryside. CPRE has consistantly opposed KIG.
After the yearly reports and elections of officers, the main speaker for the evening will be Brian Lloyd, who will talk about the forthcoming Public Inquiry into the KIG application and also about Maidstone Council’s Core Strategy document.
*The Society’s secretary Alan Smith is a member of the CPRE Maidstone committee, but more members are always welcome. Contact Alan for advice on 01622 751926.
CPRE
Thursday, July 9
Tea and biscuits from
Meeting starts at
How green is our Valley?
A PETITION of more than 100 signatures presented by Fant resident Fran Smith to Maidstone Council has succeeded in securing some commitment to a greater consideration of one of the town’s most valuable assets – the River Medway.
The petition called for the council “to introduce, as a matter of urgency, effective planning policies to protect the skyline of the Medway Valley, retain the natural setting of the River Medway between Tovil footbridge and East Farleigh bridge and stop any further building between the River and Glebe Lane/Gatland Lane and Upper Fant Road.”
The petition was referred by the full council to its Local Development Framework Advisory Group, meeting In April. Members expressed support for the petition and it was suggested that this could be extended to include protection for all water courses. But officers said that rivers, water-courses and green spaces in the borough were issues that were properly addressed in the council’s developing Core Strategy.
The councillors resolved: “That, as part of the work which will follow on from the Landscape Character Area Assessment through the Local Development Framework, the green landscape issue of the Medway Valley area be addressed at that time.
“That the protection and enhancement of rivers and water courses in the Borough be addressed in the Core Strategy.
“That officers look into the possibility of a Skyline Protection Policy along the River Medway.”
Mrs Smith said afterwards: “It’s something, but I had been hoping they would take it on board as a single issue. I’m concerned they might lose sight of the river in the wider policy picture.”
*Cllr John Wilson (South Ward) has donated £500 from his devolved budget to help start up the “Tovil and Fant Riverside Open Spaces Project” – a partnership of organizations from both sides of the Medway with an interest in the river’s enhancement. Members include representatives from Medway Valley Countryside Partnership, Tovil Parish Council, and the Medway Rivers Users Group. Joy Creasey is representing VCS at the meetings.
New Line construction
WORK is well under way on the replacement school for Oldborough Manor.
Any residents experiencing problems with HGV deliveries, noise etc, can contact the builder’s site office in the first instance:
Site reception: 01622 747171
Project director Martin Clark: 07703 502481
Project manager Andy Beavis: 07803 261894
Website: You can visit the Society’s website on www.valleyconservation.org.uk
You can email the chairman on bryncornwell@yahoo.co.uk or phone him on 01622 746514.
Answers to brainteasers:
1) 11 – there were three Anglo-Saxon King Edwards before Edward 1st
2) John Wayne (though James Stewart got the credit)
3) Buzz Aldrin (not Buzz Lightyear)
4) In the Lewis Carroll poem, The Jabberwocky
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Printed and published by Alan Smith, Bockingford House, Cripple Street, Maidstone, ME15 6DN.
