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00:00Hello and welcome to Kent Tonight, live on KMTV.
00:27I'm Bartholomew Hall. Here are your top stories on Wednesday the 16th of July.
00:32Unfair and outdated.
00:34MPs debate Kent Online's blue badge parking campaign for cancer patients.
00:40We just knew straight away that something had to be done
00:42and we needed to use our platform to change the law and change councils' minds
00:47and make sure that there's more fairness in the system.
00:50Hive of activity.
00:51East Kent revealed as the best place to see bumblebees in the UK.
00:55Well, East Kent's supposed to be the Garden of England,
00:58so we should have a wide variety of forage.
01:02And medals in the mud.
01:04Canterbury Trial Park hosts Moped Mayhem competition.
01:08It all went really, really well today and I think everyone's gone home smiling.
01:13That's the most important bit.
01:14Good evening.
01:26A campaign launched by the Kent Messenger Group is being heard in Westminster this evening
01:31as MPs and ministers discuss calls for change around disability blue parking badges.
01:37Kent Online is pushing for a fairer system to help people with cancer
01:41and short-term life-limiting illnesses to access a badge.
01:45Those affected will share their stories during a Westminster Hall debate this evening.
01:49Our reporter Gabriel Morris reports from the Houses of Parliament.
01:53Well, I'm here in Parliament where a debate is going to be held with a big Kent connection.
01:58It's a Kent Online campaign which is being heard today in a Westminster Hall debate in the Houses of Parliament.
02:05It's looking into making a fairer system for those trying to get a blue badge
02:09if they have a life-altering illness or a cancer diagnosis.
02:15Now, at the moment, PFT guidance, Department of Transport guidance, means if you have an illness
02:21which isn't going to last more than three years, or it will not last more than three years,
02:25even if it does, at the moment it's incredibly difficult to get a blue badge.
02:29Now, my colleagues over at the Kent Messenger Group first became aware of this earlier this year
02:33when they did a story around a woman called Sandy.
02:36She's here today and I've asked her what it means for her, for her issue,
02:41to be brought up today in Parliament.
02:43It's very good that someone's finally listening and trying to make some change for, you know, the people that need it.
02:51So, I'm just glad that someone's took it and is trying to get it taken further.
02:57I need one now. I've needed one for coming up for a year now.
03:02There's no other option but to apply for a full three-year.
03:07If there was a different option, that's what I would have applied for.
03:10But, you know, to deny somebody that needs a badge, to deny them it because their ailment might not last three years, isn't good enough.
03:22Now, if you need a blue badge in England, there are two ways to get it.
03:26For some people, it's automatic.
03:28But for other people, you need to be assessed by a professional.
03:31And that's what the issue is.
03:32And it says you need to have a disability for at least three years.
03:36Now, for cancer patients, that's not often the case.
03:39Now, the Kent Messenger Group heard this and they thought they could use their platform to create a fairer system.
03:45Now, so far, since launching this campaign back in March, they've got all Kent MPs on board,
03:50as well as Medway Council supporting the campaign.
03:53I've been speaking a little bit to Matt Ransom, the senior editor at Kent Online,
03:58a little bit more about why they chose to start this campaign.
04:02Well, there's nothing more important to us here at the KM Group than our readers.
04:06And when we heard that some of our readers were really battling with the restrictions around the blue badge rules,
04:12we just knew straight away that something had to be done.
04:15And we needed to use our platform to change the law and change councils' minds
04:21and make sure that there's more fairness in the system.
04:23Now, today's Westminster Hall debate won't cause any change.
04:28It's not a bill at this stage.
04:30But what it is an opportunity for the Kent MPs to speak up for the voices of those in Kent,
04:36to the minister, to the department, to try and influence change and perhaps go about a change in the future.
04:42Now, it's not clear how long it might take to do that option.
04:45It's a private members' bill.
04:47Helen Grant, the Maidstone, a Mauling MP, has been on this since day one.
04:50She's the person who's been leading this campaign and also been rallying around the other MPs and councils in Kent.
04:57But today's debate is a huge step forward, a stepping stone towards a fairer system.
05:03That's what the campaigners have said to me today.
05:06And we'll have more coverage of the debate in tomorrow's programme.
05:09Now, two teenagers have been arrested after a police officer and shopkeeper were assaulted in Broadstairs.
05:17It comes after another dispersal order across the Thanet district to tackle antisocial behaviour was implemented.
05:24Across the weekend, 23 people were asked to leave the area by police.
05:28A 15- and 17-year-old boy were arrested on suspicion of assault, the latter being on a police officer.
05:35Both were released from custody and issued with community resolutions.
05:40Police say that orders remain in constant review and will be utilised as needed.
05:44A father from Sheerness has spoken out about his horror after watching a lorry and a van crash into his car after he broke down on the Sheppey crossing.
05:54This was the scene on Monday afternoon where Mack Crabb's Ford Cougar was smashed into by the vehicles as he was travelling back onto the island.
06:03The collision saw the crossing closed by police, causing long delays and traffic backing up towards Sittingbourne.
06:08Speaking to Kent Online, the dad of one said he and his wife were lucky to be alive after they made the decision to leave the car.
06:19Now, believe it or not, Kent tops the UK for bumblebee sightings with the east of the county leading the way.
06:27More than 46,000 bumblebees have been spotted there over the last 15 years, which is 5,000 more than North Somerset, which came in second place.
06:35But despite these impressive numbers, experts say the overall bumblebee population is still in worrying decline.
06:42Kristen Hawthorne has been speaking to a Canterbury beekeeper with over 40 years of experience to get his reaction to the figures.
06:50When was the last time you seen a bumblebee?
06:53Well, if you've recently been to East Kent, your chances are higher than anyone else in the UK.
06:58That's because between 2008 and 2024, more than 46,000 of them were spotted by trained volunteers on fixed routes as part of the bee walk scheme.
07:08I went to East Kent to meet with a beekeeper who has more than 40 years of experience to see what he thinks of the figures.
07:15East Kent has the highest number of bumblebee sightings. What is your reaction to that?
07:18We're reassured. Obviously, we're aware of the impact of the climate. The further south you go, the cooler it tends to be.
07:29Despite this advantage, these figures come at a time of growing concern nationwide as numbers continue to plummet.
07:36It was actually found that bumblebee numbers dropped by 22.5% across the UK in just one year.
07:43I mean, they are, like all insects, suffering from various stressors and they are finding it very difficult to cope with the increasing temperature because they've got fur coats, of course.
07:56East Kent's supposed to be the Garden of England, so we should have a wide variety of forage.
08:02But it's not just East Kent doing the heavy lifting, as West Kent also made the top 10,
08:08making Kent the only county in the UK with two regions ranked for sightings.
08:13But experts say numbers alone won't save the bumblebee, and protecting habitats is key.
08:18Although David says that you can't look after bumblebees in the conventional way, like you can with honeybees,
08:23he says that you can look after them by planting things like lavender and thyme in your garden.
08:27He does, however, luckily enough, have two bumblebee nests in his garden.
08:32This is just one of them. We've been here for about 10 minutes. There's one about to go in now.
08:36And he says that if you see one of these in your garden, to be vigilant and, you know, if you're cutting the grass or doing your garden,
08:43to just look after it and not touch it.
08:46I think the message is gradually getting through.
08:48People are more aware, certainly, of the stressors that insects are subject to.
08:55Certainly, the yellow-tailed, yellow-legged hornet has had an impact.
09:04We've lost, I think, probably 90% of our wildflower meadows over the last 100 years,
09:13subject to building.
09:15So that takes out a lot of forage for the bees.
09:20I worry about the future, full stop, not only of bumblebees, but of all life on this planet.
09:27So while the buzz for bees in Kent is real, the work is far from over.
09:31Kristen Hawthorne, KMTV, in Canterbury.
09:36Well, Kristen joins us here in the studio now.
09:38Kristen, 46,000 bees.
09:41You're not telling me that someone really went around counting every single one of them?
09:44Well, that is actually exactly what happened.
09:46So this was done from 2008 to 2024, which you've seen in my report there.
09:52So that's basically, in total, they walked 352,000 miles,
09:57which is basically walking the earth 14 times.
10:00So it's really an extensive research that they did to see the bumblebees
10:03and count how many of them were here in Kent.
10:06And a team effort as well, we should say.
10:08A lot of people were involved in this.
10:10It wasn't just sort of one person.
10:11Now, tell us, why does this matter?
10:13I know there's lots of fans of the bees.
10:14They, you know, they help, you know, contribute towards the lovely sites
10:18that we're looking at on our screens now.
10:20But why is this so important?
10:23Well, I mean, it's important because bees, basically,
10:26they're part of the entire food chain.
10:28If there was no bees, Carly Allen, who is in the Kent Online report,
10:32she told me that if farmers were to pollinate their own farms,
10:35it would cost them 1.8 billion.
10:37So it's almost unrealistic for many, many, many farmers.
10:41But it's important for a variety of things.
10:43And this actually was a question that I posed to David when I was with him.
10:47Well, it won't be only bumblebees that become extinct,
10:51because all insects will suffer.
10:54And I think Einstein said that if we lose our insects,
11:04we'll survive on potatoes and rice.
11:10OK, so what's next?
11:11How do we make sure that Kent stays on top of that leaderboard?
11:14Well, planting things like lavender, thyme in your garden.
11:19You could also do things, I mean, if you don't have a garden,
11:21you can get a bumblebee box and put little plants and stuff in there.
11:24But it is basically due to climate change and pesticides,
11:27things like that.
11:28And it was actually said that thanks to the cold and wet spring
11:31that we've had, it's the worst year for bumblebees
11:33since records began.
11:35Well, Kristen, thank you very much for those details.
11:37And as you mentioned there, there is plenty more you can read
11:39over at Kent Online about this story.
11:41But for now, it is time for a very quick break.
11:43We'll have plenty more news made just for Kent after this.
14:51Hello and welcome back to Kent Tonight Live on KMTV.
15:16Work on a new £1 million skate park in Margate
15:19is set to begin in the spring of this year.
15:22It comes after Thanet District Council has begun seeking a private firm
15:26to design and construct the sports facility.
15:29The project is expected to include various size bowls,
15:32ramps and ledges capable of catering up to 100 users.
15:36Well, the local authority says the work,
15:37which will replace a disused crazy golf course,
15:40needs to be open and deliverance needs to be open and delivered by mid-July 2026.
15:45The director of public health at Kent County Council is warning of a measles outbreak
15:50if the uptake on vaccines isn't improved.
15:53It comes after a young boy in Liverpool died whilst being treated for the disease last week.
15:58Well, for more on this and the rest of today's health headlines,
16:01including warnings about a famous Dubai chocolate bar,
16:04it's time to speak to KMTV's health expert, Dr Julian Spinks.
16:07Well, Julian, we'll start by talking about the measles vaccine.
16:17It's been sort of dominating the headlines,
16:19especially in the past week following the passing of this young child
16:22who was being treated for measles at the time he died in Liverpool.
16:26What's your reaction to it as a GP?
16:29It's very sad because it is preventable.
16:32If we get the vaccine rates up, particularly over 95%,
16:37you more or less eradicate it.
16:39We've almost got rid of measles worldwide.
16:41And unfortunately, all the scares that happened with the Wakefield paper
16:44about possible links to autism, which have been proven to be wrong,
16:48we've got this drop-off and in some parts of Medway we've got less than 80%.
16:53So there's one in five children who are susceptible to measles.
16:56Yeah, we'll come on to some of the reasons why people may be opposed
16:59or are sceptical of taking vaccines in the moment.
17:02But those figures, to begin with, part of the warning is that
17:06we've seen, let's take Medway, as you mentioned there,
17:09in 22, 23, it was just 82.5% of children aged 5 or under had both doses.
17:17And then in last year, so the most recent year, 23 to 24,
17:19that had gone down to 80%.
17:21So that's a drop of 2.5%.
17:24And in Kent, it was a drop of around about 1% from 85% to 84%.
17:30Now, as a whole, it doesn't seem like a lot, but when, as you mentioned,
17:34that's one in five children, it could be dangerous.
17:37Absolutely.
17:38If you look at an outbreak, it's rather like a forest fire.
17:41If the trees are too spaced out, so in other words,
17:43you've vaccinated lots of children, the fire won't move from tree to tree.
17:46The more trees you have, the more susceptible children and adults,
17:50the more things can happen.
17:52You have to remember that measles is just about the most contagious disease that we have.
17:57You have a 9 out of 10 chance of catching measles
18:01if you're not protected by vaccination
18:03and you're within close contact of somebody,
18:06so within a family, for example.
18:08And in terms of increasing vaccine uptake,
18:10does it make it that ever more sort of difficult
18:12when it is young children that have to be vaccinated?
18:15Yes, there's this weird thing that people sort of go,
18:18well, if I vaccinated them and come to harm, I'd never forget myself.
18:22And they sort of forget that if they don't vaccinate them,
18:24if we get measles coming back,
18:26one in four children who get measles ends up in hospital.
18:29And it's not just the ones who die.
18:31You get people with encephalitis, inflammation of the brain.
18:34You can have permanent damage to sight, to hearing, and so on.
18:37People get a pneumonia with it and get lung problems.
18:40So it's not a nice disease at all.
18:42It's not a sort of minor childhood illness,
18:44which is the impression some people are getting.
18:46Yeah, a really nasty condition.
18:48And in terms of some of the reasons why people are opposed to vaccinations,
18:52of course, there have been conspiracy theories in the last few years.
18:57But as well, other people might say that, well,
18:59just the day-to-day busyness of life
19:01makes them forget about the importance of it.
19:04Certainly from the practices I work in,
19:06we constantly contact people whose children haven't been vaccinated
19:09to say, come in.
19:10You know, it's five minutes of your time.
19:12It'll protect your child.
19:13There are more and more people who are vaccine hesitant
19:16because they're worried.
19:17They're seeing on social media and through other sources information,
19:20which actually is not right.
19:21It gives misleading information.
19:23Why people want to spread information like that,
19:25I really don't understand.
19:27But the autism story really is done and dusted.
19:30We've got so much evidence that shows there is no link whatsoever.
19:34I think people can be reassured that's not the case.
19:36So really important, and of course, if anybody has questions,
19:39concerns around whether their child needs one,
19:41they can talk to their GP.
19:42Talk to the GP and we'll try and give you some facts
19:44and some information you can go away with.
19:46OK, we're going to move on now to a story
19:48that's coming up from some of our hospitals.
19:50So emergency staff at Maidstone Hospital
19:52are trialling body-worn cameras to protect staff safety.
19:56It comes after an increase in what the NHS are calling
19:58challenging behaviour.
20:00It's a trial that will last around 12 weeks.
20:03Do you see this as a necessary measure?
20:06Very sadly, I think I do.
20:08It's been a massive change during my career.
20:11I spent four years doing jobs which involved working in A&E.
20:15And at that time, we didn't even have a security guard
20:17in the hospital.
20:18And the number of incidents we had was very low.
20:21A lot of the time, it was either people who were drunk
20:23or people who had mental illness, for example.
20:26But I hear from colleagues now, it's almost a daily effect.
20:29And I think they're hoping that the body-worn cameras
20:32will actually act as a deterrent.
20:33It's the same thing you see on police.
20:35I was on a train the other day
20:36and the guard had got a camera as well.
20:39And they have to be warned.
20:41So someone will say, I'm going to record this.
20:43And hope is that will make them step back a bit.
20:46If not, at least you've got the evidence to prosecute
20:48and they should be prosecuted.
20:49And of course, emergency workers of all settings
20:52should be made to feel safe to be able to carry out their duty
20:55and look after people saving lives.
20:57Yeah, we spend our lives actually putting ourselves at risk
20:59from infection and other things.
21:01It shouldn't be that we're put at risk
21:02from people just assaulting us for doing our job.
21:05Now, I want to move on to online food trends.
21:08There's a brand of this famous Dubai chocolate bar.
21:11We've got a picture of it on the screen here.
21:13It looks on the outside similar to a regular chocolate bar.
21:16On the inside, a little bit more green.
21:18These videos, they've been shared around social media sites
21:20like TikTok of people opening the bar.
21:23We've got one here.
21:24And it's almost this sort of green, satisfying inside
21:27for people that are that way inclined.
21:29Now, the Food Standards Agency is warning about one particular brand.
21:33It's the Noesis Chocolade Love of Dubai bar.
21:37They're saying it shouldn't be bought or eaten,
21:40especially by those with a peanut allergy.
21:42We spoke a little bit about it before.
21:44Why would this be a risk if the presence of peanuts
21:48is not being sort of advertised?
21:50If you're unlucky enough to be peanut allergic,
21:53you can have very severe reactions from very tiny amounts.
21:56You don't have to eat a whole peanut.
21:57It can be fractions of a peanut or peanut paste in something.
22:01And that's why it's so important that labelling is correct
22:05because it means people can avoid it.
22:07Yes, people can carry adrenaline autoinjectors and so on just in case.
22:11But really, the best thing is not to go near foods
22:14that have peanuts in them.
22:15If you don't know, that's a real problem.
22:17And if you're getting bars from overseas,
22:20you can't guarantee there's the same food safety standards
22:23and labelling standards that you get in the UK.
22:26I suppose that's the problem, isn't it?
22:27When, you know, a year ago, shelves,
22:30you wouldn't have seen Dubai chocolate anywhere.
22:31But because of the popularity of it online, it's stocked up.
22:34You're seeing it being imported from other countries.
22:36Companies, I mean, the company that was mentioned here,
22:38Black Sea Trading, have been tried to be contacted by the media,
22:42by the Food Standards Agency,
22:44haven't been able to get in touch with them.
22:45And that risk is there when you do have these sort of online fads
22:48that just come out of nowhere.
22:50Yes, I think the one reassuring thing is wait a year
22:52and it'll fall out of favour and they'll be on to something else.
22:56But yeah, anything you're getting through the internet,
22:59there's always a danger
23:01you're not actually getting what you think you're getting
23:02and you are less certain that you're going to get something
23:05that meets proper safety standards,
23:07whether it's a bit of furniture or a chocolate bar.
23:10Julian, thank you very much for joining us.
23:12It's really good to speak with you again this week.
23:15Now, don't forget, you can keep up to date
23:17with all the latest stories across Kent
23:18by logging on to our website, kmtv.co.uk.
23:21You'll find all of our reports, including this one.
23:25The weather hasn't quite held out for this year,
23:28but let's slide into the Kent County Show 2025.
23:30It's a bit wet and rainy, but it won't dampen some wicked spirits.
23:40Are you having a nice time at the county show?
23:42Yeah, lovely.
23:42Yeah, really good, really good.
23:43Actually, brilliant. Loving it.
23:45Apart from the weather, but who cares?
23:47We're English, though.
23:48We're used to it.
23:50So we're all used to it, aren't we?
23:51Yeah, we are used to it.
23:53Hence the rain.
23:54Great time, yeah.
23:55Yeah, brilliant. It's lovely.
23:56Now the rain's stopped.
23:57Wilma, are you having a nice day?
23:59With more than 60,000 people entering the gates,
24:04it's a chance for Kent charities to shout about their cause.
24:08This is something bowel screening did about 10 years ago,
24:11and we've wanted to do it again since.
24:13And what difference do you think this makes to young people as well,
24:16who might not even understand what something like bowel cancer is,
24:19but to actually see it as well and give it a visualisation?
24:23I think it just gets them talking to the parents,
24:25and then it opens the parents up a little bit more for conversation,
24:28so it's been a great talking piece to have at the show.
24:31This is Dory, and she's been specially trained to tell her owner Sophie
24:35when she's either got low blood sugar or high blood sugar.
24:39Like most charities at the moment, we are struggling, really, really struggling.
24:42We don't charge the families either, but the money's got to come from somewhere.
24:45Unless we get support, we have to have a waiting list.
24:48If we have a waiting list, those children that are on it,
24:51it's just one hypo, and the consequences could be fatal,
24:53so we really don't need to close that puppy programme this year.
24:57We're a massive animal centre, rescue centre in Tenham.
25:00We've just got over 300 animals, and it grows more and more every single day.
25:05Where are you rescuing the animals from?
25:07From people.
25:08So at the moment, the pet trade is a bit of a mess.
25:10People can't afford to keep their pets.
25:12We get contacted all the time about taking on animals.
25:14Even breeders all over the UK are contacting us and saying,
25:17can you take these animals?
25:18So could she bite?
25:20Yes, she could bite, but you could bite as well.
25:22You're choosing not to.
25:23Do you know what I mean?
25:24It's how you act with them that actually makes them do that.
25:27What an amazing animal.
25:29They are misunderstood, very misunderstood.
25:30Even spiders are very misunderstood.
25:33So this year, I've faced my fears,
25:36both of heights and potentially spiders too,
25:39but it's nothing compared to the challenge these charities have in front of them.
25:44And for the 94th Kent County Show to make it even bigger and better next year.
25:51Abbey Hook for KMTV at the Detling Showground.
25:56Well, the weather didn't look that great there,
25:58but let's see what it's looking like for the coming days.
26:00Well, this evening brings clear night skies with temperatures from 16 to 18 degrees.
26:10Low wind speeds for Kent into the night as we go towards tomorrow morning.
26:15Partly cloudy weather for most of us.
26:17Winds staying low.
26:19As we go towards the afternoon, those temperatures rising.
26:22Things staying rather cloudy, though.
26:24Highs of 26 in Maidstone.
26:26Here is your outlook as we go towards the rest of the week.
26:28Highs of 28 on Friday,
26:30but getting a little bit drizzly as we go towards the start of the weekend.
26:41Time for a quick break now,
26:43but coming up we'll be looking back at our top story.
26:46We'll have all that and plenty more after this.
36:44We're aware of the impact of the climate.
36:45The further south you go, the cooler it tends to be.
36:47Despite this advantage, these figures come at a time of growing concern nationwide as numbers
36:53continue to plummet.
36:54It was actually found that bumblebee numbers dropped by 22.5% across the UK in just one year.
37:01I mean they are like all insects suffering from various stressors and they are finding it very difficult to cope with the increasing temperature because they've got fur coats of course.
37:14East Kent is supposed to be the Garden of England so we should have a wide variety of forage.
37:20But it's not just East Kent doing the heavy lifting as West Kent also made the top 10 making Kent the only county in the UK with two regions ranked for sightings.
37:31But experts say numbers alone won't save the bumblebee and protecting habitats is key.
37:37Although David says that you can't look after bumblebees in the conventional way like you can with honeybees he says that you can look after them by planting things like lavender and thyme in your garden.
37:45He does however luckily enough have two bumblebee nests in his garden this is just one of them we've been here for about 10 minutes there's one about to go in now and he says that if you see one of these in your garden to be vigilant and you know if you're cutting the grass or doing your garden to just look after it and not touch it.
38:04I think the message is gradually getting through people are more aware certainly of the stresses that insects are subject to certainly the yellow-tailed yellow-legged hornet has had an impact.
38:22We've lost I think probably 90% of our wildflower meadows over the last 100 years subject to building so that takes out a lot of forage for the bees.
38:38I worry about the future full stop not only of bumblebees but of all life on this planet.
38:44So while the buzz for bees in Kent is real the work is far from over. Kristen Hawthorne, KMTV in Canterbury.
38:54Kristen's here with us now. Kristen tell us a bit more about how the numbers were recorded. You were telling me earlier nobody was actually walking around counting.
39:03No sorry they actually were. They were.
39:04They were walking around counting these 46,000 one by one.
39:07Exactly. So that's what happened. So it was called the Bee Walk Scheme which was done from 2008 to 2024 which you've seen in my report there.
39:16This was run by the Bumble Bee Conservation Trust and the data was put together by Relief.
39:22So interestingly more than 352,000 miles were walked by the volunteers, the trained volunteers, which is the equivalent of walking the earth 14 times.
39:32So it was certainly an extensive report that they did. Like I said as well West Kent was also on the list making Kent the only county to have two spots on the ranking.
39:42But they only had 11,200 sightings compared to the 46,000 in East Kent.
39:48And just remind us again why it is so important to monitor the numbers of bumblebees.
39:54Yes. So it's important because they're all part of the feed chain.
39:57And if there's no bumblebees then everything else suffers basically including us humans.
40:01So I mean this was a question that I posed to David when I was with him.
40:05So we can maybe hear what he had to say about that as well.
40:09Well it won't be only bumblebees that become extinct because all insects will suffer.
40:16And I think Einstein said that if we lose our insects we'll survive on potatoes and rice.
40:30I mean very important of course.
40:34And you were telling me earlier 23 different types of bumblebees.
40:37I had no idea about this. I would have just thought they were all the same.
40:40Well me too. But yeah 23 different kinds of bumblebees.
40:44The most common ones that were spotted in East Kent include the buff-tailed which is this one here.
40:49The buff-tailed. Then we have the red-tailed bumblebee which is going to come up next.
40:54This is the red-tailed bumblebee.
40:55I've never seen this one personally myself but apparently there's lots in East Kent.
40:59This is the garden bumblebee.
41:01And then next up we have the common quarter bumblebee as well which is maybe the one that you would see most often.
41:08I mean we need to get out walking if we want to spot all these different types of bumblebees don't we.
41:12What's next then? What's the advice?
41:14What steps can we do to make sure that Kent stays at the top of that leaderboard?
41:18Certainly. So if you have a garden you can plant.
41:21They quite like herbal things which is something that I find quite interesting.
41:26Lavender, thyme, sage.
41:28There's lots of different things.
41:29Just have a quick look at the internet of what you can plant.
41:31If you don't have a garden you can get something called a bee box which you can plant little things in there.
41:35You can maybe even put some stuff on your windowsills as well.
41:38And I'm sure there'll be lots of Kent cricket fans that would love to go up against Somerset on that leaderboard as well.
41:43Right, time for a break.
41:44We'll have the final part of Kent tonight coming up in just a few moments.
42:05Thank you very much.
45:35And to find out more, we sent our reporter Kai Wei down to the track to see who came
45:40out victorious.
45:41The Canterbury Trail Park is hosting this year's Moped Mayhem Championships, and despite the
46:06thunderstorms and gloomy weather, racers drove for more than four hours.
46:10So Moped Man's been running since 1980-ish, so it's been a long-standing race series or
46:19event series with five different classes of bikes, teams of riders up to six within each
46:27team, and we run all over the country, really.
46:30The race today was really good, track conditions were hard because it was quite muddy.
46:35All racers had a great time, including myself, so I went out there and had a few laps.
46:41Might have done a few more than a few laps, but yeah.
46:43So yeah, it all went really, it all went really, really well today, and I think everyone's gone
46:49home smiling.
46:49That's the most important bit.
46:51The owner of the venue says that the park is very important to Kent, and that one of its
47:11main aims is to keep riders off the streets and out of trouble.
47:14I started this about a year ago, so there was nowhere for anyone locally to ride, trying
47:20to get kids and adults as well off the streets and riding in parks, and just give them somewhere
47:25safe, managed and marshaled to ride.
47:27We're off-roader bikes, you're not allowed to ride them anywhere other than private land,
47:34which is very hard to find these days, so we offer a cheap, safe and decent place for
47:42people to come and ride, really.
47:43The nearest track's about an hour and a half away, London way, and we're the only one
47:48sort of this side of Kemp, really.
47:51Obviously I ride anyway, but not these sort of bikes, we're on proper motocross bikes normally.
47:56It's been a good laugh today, certainly a good event, and I'd recommend it to anyone that's
48:01got time to come either next year or to their next round, really.
48:09With all the teams taking home at least one trophy, which were made out of motorbike parts,
48:12it's safe to say everyone went home happy and muddy.
48:15Good stuff there. Now don't forget, you can keep up to date with all your latest stories
48:24across Kent by logging on to our website, it's kmtv.co.uk. When you're there, you'll find
48:29all of our reports, including this one, about an independent school in Longfield celebrating
48:33its 90th anniversary.
48:36The Steep Hill School is celebrating its 90th anniversary with pupils and teachers, past
48:42and present, coming together to celebrate the occasion.
48:46Founded in 1939 by Ellen Bignold, the independent school is celebrating its long history, even surviving
48:55the Second World War, where it sheltered pupils.
48:59I think Ms Bignold would be hugely proud of what the school has achieved. It's grown significantly
49:05since she started the school. Whilst we still remain to the core of the values that Ms Bignold
49:10instilled in the school when it's founded, we're very proud that we have our own values
49:15today to carry on the great legacy that she began.
49:18Some of those who attended the school are now staffed and reminisced on their days of
49:24gardening, lessons and fish finger lunches.
49:27Well, it's a really impressive thing and a really enjoyable day to be here to celebrate
49:33with everybody here at Steep Hill. I was a pupil here in the 1990s and it's very, very
49:40much a privilege for me to now be a governor at the school, to be able to see the school continue
49:44to succeed in everything that it does.
49:47Some of the retired and current members of staff even had the honour of having some
49:53of the classrooms named after them with new flats.
49:56We knew nothing about it and it's been a lovely, a really lovely surprise to find out
50:02that we're being honoured in this way because we've given our time obviously all for nothing
50:07for the last 30 odd years, 35 years, yes, as governors, so yes.
50:12They kept it a good secret because we're all on the board of governors and we've been discussing
50:16this at various meetings and we never got any idea.
50:20I'm extremely proud, look at that Mrs. Miss Brantler, art and detail, very, very
50:28wonderful.
50:30Now Steep Hill's school was originally going to close following the passing of its then head
50:34master, Ellen Bignold, but a group of parents who didn't want to see it closed formed a group
50:40to buy the school from Bignold's hair and it's because of their intervention that Steep Hill's
50:46school is still around and celebrating its 90th anniversary today.
50:52Hopefully Steep Hill will continue to educate for another 90 years and keep the spirit of
50:58Ellen Bignold proud. Henry Luck for Kame TV in Longfield.
51:06Time now to take a look at the weather for the coming days.
51:12Well this evening brings with it clear night skies across the county, temperatures ranging from 16
51:18to 18 degrees, low wind speeds along with it and as we go into tomorrow morning, things slightly
51:23warming up but turning a little bit cloudy, those low wind speeds still hanging around as
51:28we go towards the afternoon, hotting up even more, highs of 26 in Maidstone staying rather
51:34cloudy though and here's the outlook as we go towards the rest of the week and the weekend,
51:38highs of 28 on Friday but things turning a little bit drizzly as we go into the weekend
51:42on Saturday.
51:44Now right after this episode of Kent tonight we'll have a new one from the Kent Chronicles
51:58programme which keeps you informed and entertained on all the history news from across the county
52:02alongside some interesting trivia you might not know about the Garden of England.
52:07Well to test me on my trivia now is the show's presenter and producer Finn McDermid.
52:12What have you got for us this week? I'll be honest I've been looking forward to this
52:15because everybody, all the other Kent tonight presenters have taken your quizzes, now it's
52:20my turn, I did okay in history, I did drop it just before the exam but I'm looking forward
52:25to this.
52:26No yeah it's going to be a great episode and hopefully you do quite well here.
52:29So we'll be speaking quite a bit about this man right here, Henry VIII and his connection
52:35to the county and there are quite a lot of them.
52:38Now although the family had their main residence in London obviously they've regularly visited
52:44Kent and used it as a gateway to continental Europe so what I thought we'd do is quiz you
52:49about whether or not Henry VIII visited certain locations in Kent. If he did then I'll ask you
52:54was it for business or was it for relaxation, pleasure, general leisure, things like that.
52:59Right.
53:00And I'll also give you a bit of background on each location as well.
53:03Okay.
53:04You ready?
53:05Yes.
53:06Okay let's have a look at our first location.
53:07This is Dover Castle.
53:09Dover Castle.
53:10Yep sorry I should have let you go there.
53:11It's Dover Castle.
53:12I can do that one.
53:13It dates potentially back to the Iron Age but it's best known for its use as a Roman lighthouse
53:17all the way back in the early second century. So what do you reckon?
53:20I'm going to say yes. He did visit.
53:22He did visit Dover Castle. Now was it for business or pleasure?
53:25I'm going to say business.
53:27You'd be right. He visited to make improvements to his defences including the moat bulwark I
53:32believe it's pronounced which it has on its grounds as well. So you might not know that.
53:36Next let's have a look at our next one. Where is this?
53:38This is Rochester.
53:39Yep pretty close to home. One of the best preserved castles of its time in the whole country actually.
53:44Very crucial in helping protect England's south east coast from invasion during the late medieval period.
53:50So what do you think?
53:51Well I know Rochester has lots of history. Lots of ties to Dickens for example.
53:56But I've never heard Henry VIII been linked to it. So I'm going to say no.
54:00Unfortunately you are wrong there. He did visit. It's an interesting story actually.
54:05So I'm sure you know obviously about Henry VIII and his many wives.
54:09In fact he visited on New Year's Day in 1540 in disguise to surprise his betrothed Anne of Cleves.
54:18She actually didn't recognise him causing him severe embarrassment and it actually considered one of the reasons
54:23their marriage was annulled only six months later.
54:26Oh wow.
54:27So don't try that one at the club.
54:28No. No. Not in Rochester. Okay.
54:30No. Not in casinos. Other clubs are available. But let's have a look at some more then.
54:35This next one is Knoll House.
54:38Okay. Yes.
54:39It's an English country house.
54:40In Sevenoaks.
54:41It is in Sevenoaks.
54:42Yeah. And a former Archbishop's Palace. It's owned by the National Trust.
54:45It's now in the top five of England's largest houses. This doesn't really do it justice.
54:49It's quite large. About four acres. What do you reckon?
54:52Let's go with yes. He did.
54:53Yes. He did.
54:55You might be seeing a theme here. He did.
54:57Was it for business or for pleasure?
54:59I'm going to say this one, Sevenoaks, lovely town, pleasure.
55:03It was. He would visit the house to hunt deer when it became a deer park.
55:07And he often found it a useful place for his daughter, Mary, to stay.
55:10Very nice.
55:11Now let's have a look at our next one. I think you should know this one.
55:14This is Leeds Castle.
55:16It is.
55:17That took me for a second. It's the Walter.
55:18Because I've been there for their lovely Christmas light displays.
55:21Yes. We do have some good, lovely sights here in Kent, don't we?
55:24Yeah.
55:25So I'm going to say yes, Leeds Castle.
55:26Yes, it is.
55:27Leeds Castle, known obviously now for its yearly concert, but was once owned by a Saxon chief
55:31and then eventually had the king here making major changes to the castle to suit his visits
55:36there with his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.
55:38He transformed it. He made many changes, flattening archways, decorating fireplaces.
55:42He even added a whole new floor for his queen.
55:45Oh, wow. I think I went here on a school trip.
55:48Oh, really?
55:49I could be wrong. Does he have a bedroom there?
55:50He might do. His queen definitely would have at some point.
55:53Okay.
55:54And let's have a look if we have the last picture. There it is. Perfect. Do you know this place?
55:59Oh, no. I don't think so.
56:02It's fair enough. This is Scottney Castle. Now it is called a castle, but it's actually more of a country house with some formal gardens.
56:08It's in, it's just southeast of the village of Lamberhurst in Tunbridge Wells. So what do you reckon?
56:13I'm going to say yes.
56:15I've been a bit mean here. All the other ones of yes, and this is, I left the no for last.
56:20Okay.
56:21This is the only, I did a lot of research for this, one of the only places I could find.
56:25I had to make sure that he didn't show.
56:26I was scouring everything about Scottney Castle. It doesn't have any mention of Henry VIII in its online pages,
56:33and it might have been for the best, as at one point it was used to hide Catholic priests.
56:36Fantastic. Well, we'll have plenty more history coming up in the programme after the break.
56:41That is it from us. We'll see you tomorrow.
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