What’s happening where you live...
Correspondent: Jenny Cosgrove Tel: 01622 630462 jenny.cosgrove@ hotmail. co.uk Epiphany Sunday: The monthly Family Service will be on Sunday, January 8 at 10.30am in St Martin of Tours church. Everyone welcome and to stay afterwards for hot drinks and a chat. Correspondent: Martin Hider Tel: 01622 736327 mhider5@ gmail.com Messy fun: The next meeting of Messy Church at St Nicholas Church will take place on Monday January 9 at 3.30pm. Craftwork, a story and songs followed by a tea. Children with their parents/ carers welcome. For details phone 01622 861382. Any answers: A quiz will take place at St Nicholas Church on Wednesday, January 11 at 7.30pm. Take your own nibbles and drinks. For details phone 01622 737684 or 739129. Correspondent: Maureen Jopson, 68 Stockett Lane, Coxheath, ME17 4PY Tel: 01622 746086 joplot8@ hotmail.co.uk WI: The first meeting of the New Year of The Farleighs WI will be on Wednesday December 11 at 7.30pm in the WI hall, Forge Lane. This month there will be a whist drive. New members welcome. Why not go along for two meetings before deciding to join? If you would like details, contact Diane Scott on 01622 814476. A big thank you to all the stall holders and supporters of the table top sale, held recently. Proceeds are going towards the hall refurbishment. PARISH COUNCIL: The parish council noted the budget for 2017/18 incorporating the changes agreed at the November meeting and a final decision on the precept will be made at the January meeting. The Internal Audit report for the first half year, 2016/17 has been received and there were no significant issues. The auditor had suggested that it would be acceptable to do just one audit at the end of the financial year from now on, as procedures were sound, so this was agreed. The cancer collection boxes had all been received and a donation of £82.42 had been sent to Cancer Research UK, on behalf of the village. Work had been started on the new parish council website and, when complete, will be accessible for users. Car park. The clerk was taking matters forward with the High Court Sheriff to pursue Triple M for the money it owes. Tesco’s insurance company had received an estimate for a new gate and the parish council was awaiting a response. Due to illness and bereavement, it has not yet been possible for the parking bays to be painted. A member of the parish council would approach the head teacher and the chair of governors of East Farleigh Primary School, following a complaint from a resident about parents parking on Vicarage Lane again. It was felt that there were not enough spaces in the car park and some parents park at the bottom of the hill so as to allow their children some independence in walking by themselves. KCC had issued a traffic order to implement a 30mph speed limit in Dean Street between a point 415m north east of its junction with Lower Road and a point 363m south west of the same junction. The parish council had written to KCC in support of this. The next meeting of parish council is on Tuesday January 10 at 7.15pm in the Old School Hall, Lower Road. If needed, the planning committee will meet at 6.45pm prior to the parish council meeting. Correspondent: Fran Smith, 14 Pitt Road, Maidstone, ME16 8PA Mob: 07791 650955 Tel: 01622 720623 fransmith@ talktalk.net Correspondent: Joan Drury, Weirton Villa, Headcorn Road, Grafty Green, ME17 2AP Tel: 01622 853766 jdrury23@ btinternet.com Parish council: The date of the next meeting has been changed. It will be held on Tuesday, January 17 at 7.30pm in Grafty Green Village Hall. One of the items on the agenda will be a planning application for three x four bedroom houses in Woodcock Lane. The site adjoins Ferndown and is opposite Ash Tree Farm. The application number is 16/508/165/ FULL. Worship and Prayers: There will be a service of choral evensong in St Nicholas church Boughton Malherbe on Sunday, January 8 at 3.30pm. Tuesday prayers will be in Ulcombe church on January 10 at 9.30am. Gardening club: The club’s short annual meeting will be held on Tuesday, January 10 at 7.30pm in Grafty Green Village Hall. The meeting will be followed by Sarah Morgan’s talk about Alpines in Landscape Design. Village hall: 2016 was a busy year for Grafty Green Village Hall. The annual quiz night was a great success despite the failure of the quizmaster to get all the answers right! A new urn has been bought and the committee is investigating the possibility of installing a scale-inhibiting system in the hall. Coffee cancelled: The January coffee morning has been cancelled due to a lack of helpers. Volunteers are needed. Anyone interested in helping is invited to contact the church warden, Joan Davidson, on 01622 850210. Correspondent: Jackie Nixon Mob: 07950 549887 jackie.kmlocal@ hotmail. com If you have an item concerning Grove Green, please contact the correspondent above. Correspondent: Rosa Sams, Uplands Hogbarn Lane, Harrietsham, Maidstone, ME17 1NZ Tel: 01622 859412 rosa.sams@ googlemail.com If you have an item concerning Harrietsham, please contact the correspondent above. Correspondent: Daniel Lavender, 1B Forge Lane, Headcorn, TN27 9QG Mob: 07496 137109 danlav@ymail.com Christingle Service: For those who missed out on the Christingle Service at St Peter and St Paul Church last month, there is another chance to go as there is a Christingle at the Methodist RSPCA staff are desperately looking for a home for this lovely boy. Charlie was involved in a road accident and despite the vet’s best efforts lost the use of his front leg and had to have it amputated. He has been undaunted by his ordeal and now he has recovered and can get around at great speed when he wants