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Catch up with all the latest news from across the county with Meghan Shaw.
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00:26Hello and welcome to Kent tonight live on
00:29KMTV. I'm Megan Shaw and here are your top stories on Tuesday the 30th of June.
00:36Medway maternity. Following the NHS inquiry, what do mothers make of the service here in Kent?
00:43So I think that absolutely there needs to be somebody that's accountable and ensuring that
00:49we're learning from mistakes and implementing change. Community crackdown. Police dish out
00:55more than 200 warnings for antisocial behaviour in this year alone. You're being threatening members
01:02of the public, you're being abusive, you're being antisocial. Turning back the time. This
01:08weekend marks Canterbury's annual medieval pageant. Well I mean I think it's almost something of a
01:13platitude to say that we need to know our history, we need to know who we are in order to
01:17go forward.
01:27But first, our top story tonight. A new report into the feelings of maternity care here in England
01:34has highlighted the damning state of the system, such as mothers feeling dismissed or the care
01:39providers not having enough staff. East Kent Hospital Trust has specific contributions to the
01:45report, which has mentioned specific ideas changed the service into one fit for the future.
01:50Vim McDermid has the story. Not fit for now and not fit for the future. Those are the words of
01:57Baroness Valerie Amos, who has today released a report looking into the failings in maternity
02:01care across England. It highlighted a range of issues, like mothers with their concerns being
02:07dismissed, those in a minority who are more likely to pass away after their pregnancy than those who
02:12aren't, or those who have lost their children, like Zoe who lost her son Carter. She stayed in a
02:18bereavement suite at the William Harvey Hospital and says it made the horrible experience bearable,
02:22but not everyone has access to one at their local hospital.
02:25It's, that, I think that really frustrates me, the fact that there are women out there that are
02:30going through exactly what we've gone through and they don't have an option to stay anywhere, like
02:36that, there's something wrong there, something has got to change. And I think had I not have gone
02:42through what we went through, I would have been like, okay, you know, the NHS is struggling,
02:49so I understand. But actually, I think staying in, staying in that bereavement suite really helped
02:55our mental health and really helped us process grief.
02:59Now, while the Baroness's review has had specific contributions from those treated at East Kent
03:04hospitals, what's the quality of care like here at Medway or some other hospitals across the county?
03:09So, I have to have had a fantastic experience with Medway NHS, both the community trust and
03:14the hospital trust. So, yeah, midwives were fantastic, prenatally, as well as during delivery.
03:22It was at Pembroke Hospital, I had a caesarean section, it was all planned, and yeah, I had
03:29the best experience that I had.
03:31While the two say they had positive birth experiences, they say they understand why change is needed.
03:36I can't even imagine what it's like for the families that have experienced loss or real
03:41sort of trauma during birth. So, I think that absolutely there needs to be somebody that's
03:46accountable and ensuring that we're learning from mistakes and implementing change.
03:51I do feel if you, at the end of the day, like a mother does know their own body. And
03:55I think
03:56to just be like, to be open and heard is really, really important, especially going through a labour.
04:01Some of the recommendations in the report included the creation of a maternity and
04:06neonatal commissioner to oversee change, the creation of a modern service framework to set
04:11out the national standards, and to treat racism, discrimination and inequality as a critical
04:16maternity safety issue, starting work immediately.
04:19The report says the system needs an overhaul, and while larger-scale ideas and structures will
04:24take time to implement, making sure that mothers have a voice in their maternity care is something
04:28the young mums here in Kent say they want to see across the whole pregnancy timeline,
04:32whether it's pre-birth, at the triage stage or after the baby is born.
04:37Finn McDermid for Kame TV in Medway.
04:41Multiple people have been charged after a serious assault at the weekend sparked a huge emergency
04:47response. Armed police were sent to a country lane at around 7.36pm on Sunday after reports of
04:53weapons being used in Lennon Road Headcon. Three men and three women were arrested in connection
04:58with the incident, and four have now been charged. John Burke, 36, is set to appear at Sevenoaks
05:04Magistrates' Court tomorrow. Miriam O'Brien and Bridget O'Brien will both be appearing at
05:09Magistrates' Court tomorrow. And Michael O'Brien is set to appear at Folkestone Magistrates' Court
05:15tomorrow.
05:18A large emergency services president was seen near a school after an arrested man suffered a medical
05:24episode in a police vehicle. Officers were called to Swanscombe yesterday after reports of a disturbance
05:30where a man in his 30s was arrested. On the way to Medway Police Station, however, officers had to
05:36stop to give him medical attention, with five police cars, two vans and two ambulances seen on
05:42Jenningham Gate Road shortly before 6pm. A spokesperson for Kent Police said paramedics
05:47attended and the man was taken to a local hospital. He's since been discharged and remains in police
05:53custody.
05:54Nigel Farage has shared a picture of graffiti in Kent calling for his assassination.
06:00The Reform UK leader found the threat in Folkestone, although the word assassinate was misspelt.
06:05A second line of graffiti was less clear but appeared to include offensive language.
06:09A spokesman for Folkestone and Hyth District Council said,
06:13We've been made aware about the graffiti and one of our officers is due to clear it.
06:17Nigel Farage has been targeted before, as last year Afghan Nashoh Fayaz Khan was in prison
06:22for five years after making a TikTok video where he threatened to kill the political leader.
06:27Kent Police and Mr Farage have been contacted for comment.
06:33And just this year, Kent Police has issued more than 250 community protection warnings and
06:38notices for anti-social behaviour, as I've been finding out.
06:42You've been served a community protection warning in relation to your recent behaviour.
06:46Secondly,
06:47This is just one of hundreds of community protection warnings and notices issued by Kent Police this
06:54year.
06:54From Folkestone to Fabersham and Ramsgate to Rochester, anti-social behaviour has seen a crackdown
07:01across the county.
07:02You have got a CPN.
07:04So far this year, Kent Police have issued 217 community protection warnings which precede
07:11community protection notices, of which 51 have been given out.
07:16These impose certain restrictions or actions.
07:19And breaching a CPN is a criminal offence, which can result in a fixed penalty notice.
07:24As the weather gets warmer, residents spend more time outside.
07:29Only last month did Thanet see disorder and disruption on Broadstairs and Margate beaches,
07:35after social media whipped up a frenzy that led to teenagers being arrested.
07:40Now, a three-year public spaces protection order has been approved.
07:44We've got security at the stations in Broadstairs and in Margate.
07:49We've got British Transport Police on hand.
07:53We've got our own townhouse security officers who are working hand-in-hand with Kent Police
08:02to make sure they're kind of acting as spotters.
08:05So actually, a lot of that work has been done.
08:07And if you cast your mind back to last year, what you saw was kind of mass shoplifting.
08:12You saw multiple fights on the streets.
08:15You saw shop windows getting broken.
08:18People going into restaurants and fighting.
08:20Now, actually, none of that's happened.
08:21What we've had is one or two small flare-ups.
08:25But back in Rochester, do residents still think restrictions like these are enough at curbing this disruption?
08:32You know, you take the rough with the smooth, and I think if you live on a high street,
08:35you've got to accept that the pubs have been here long before you have.
08:39So if you want to live here and benefit from everything the high street has to offer,
08:43it comes with its downside.
08:45The attitude nowadays isn't what it was.
08:48I think there's not a lot for kids to do,
08:52especially that sort of age between 14 and 18 when you can go to the pub
08:56and actually be allowed to go in it and stuff like that.
08:58So I think there's enough for them to do.
08:59Superintendent Rob Marsh said,
09:02Community protection warnings and notices are invaluable
09:06because they give persistent troublemakers the chance to address their behaviour
09:09and potentially avoid criminal action being taken against them.
09:14But with warmer weather to stay,
09:16it looks like the fight against such behaviour is far from over.
09:20Megan Shaw, The Game TV.
09:22It's unacceptable. It can't carry on.
09:25The location of the first 300 homes for a new garden town has been revealed
09:29as residents of nearby villages remain divided over the project.
09:34Otterpool Park, located near the former Folkestone Racecourse site
09:38between Hyth and Ashford,
09:39is said to eventually grow to 10,000 properties across more than 1,700 acres.
09:45And Naila Mahamad joins me now on the sofa to tell us more.
09:48So Naila, tell us first of all about this new set of homes.
09:51So the new set of homes, I mean the amount that you've said there are about 10,000 homes,
09:55meant to sit between Hyth and Ashford by the Folkestone Racecourse.
09:59You can see the plans on the screen here.
10:01You've got all sorts of things.
10:03So the proposed, you've got mixed housing, communal,
10:05you've got business areas as well, also a huge sports area.
10:10And it was confirmed at a public exhibition in Selinge last week.
10:14That's the site of the racecourse there.
10:16And it's confirmed that it will be a PLOS near the railway station
10:19earmarked for the first few houses.
10:22And what we see on screen now is what the site is proposed to look like
10:25once it's been completed.
10:27But they're not predicting that the houses will be starting to build
10:30until 2029 at the earliest.
10:32I see.
10:33And obviously you kind of mentioned there, there's been a bit of a divide.
10:37So what are the reactions that we're getting about this new homes?
10:40So it's been very, very mixed.
10:42Some people are for it.
10:43Some people are against it.
10:44Because it's planned to be larger than Hyth,
10:46population is going to be coming in.
10:48Traffic is going to be coming in.
10:49A couple of residents have said that they're quite shocked
10:51at the size of the proposed site.
10:53And another says that they believe that the council have appeared
10:57to underestimate the size.
10:59And we've actually spoke to the leader of the council, Jim Martin,
11:02who says he remains quite positive about the future of the plan.
11:05Let's hear from him now.
11:06The people around us, Paul, there's nobody there that's a cheerleader.
11:13But effectively what they want is just they want to get on with it.
11:17They want to get it going, get it, you know,
11:20they've been hearing about it for years.
11:22They would now like to see something done.
11:25You know, this is really all in all a great step forward.
11:29There'll be more.
11:30There'll be other hurdles that we're in the process of overcoming.
11:35But a very, very positive step forward
11:39and looking forward to some building works being carried out.
11:44And now it's time for a quick break.
11:46But coming up, we'll be hearing all about Canterbury's Medieval Pageant.
11:50Sounds exciting.
11:51Stay tuned.
11:51We'll find out more then.
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15:14Hello and welcome back to Kent's Nightlife here on KMTV.
15:19The Crossroads McMillan Volunteer Service, which supports hundreds of cancer patients
15:23a year in Kent, is at risk of closure due to lack of funding. They have set themselves
15:28a goal of £30,000 by the end of July to keep the service alive as they search for long
15:34-term
15:34funding. We spoke to County Lead Clare Battersby about it earlier today and here's what she
15:39had to say. First of all, thank you so much for joining us Clare. Just to start out, are
15:44you alright to just outline the kind of services and support that the volunteers at Crossroads
15:50provide? Yes, of course. So we provide volunteer service to support people living with cancer
15:58across Kent and Medway. The volunteers, there's sort of three main strands that they support
16:04with. So the first is companionship, a listening ear, sort of a difficult time for somebody.
16:11Then we provide volunteer transport, so helping them get to their essential healthcare appointments.
16:17And then we do sort of a bit of a practical support around the home. We have previously
16:23done sort of a bit of light housework, but at the moment the focus is on gardening support.
16:29So we have a fantastic group of volunteers who go out and do some gardening, helping do
16:35a bit of makeover of someone's garden. Them kind of find that love for their garden as
16:40well and have that space that they can get out and enjoy themselves.
16:43The services at Crossroads might be at risk due to perhaps not having that funding needed.
16:49So can you tell us a bit more about this?
16:52Yeah, so this is specifically our Macmillan service within the wider scope of Crossroads.
17:00So we have been funded by Macmillan Cancer Support for 14 years and that funding is due to come to
17:09an end.
17:10It's just obviously the way it's kind of happened at the moment and we hadn't got other funding lined up.
17:18Sadly, we're now in a position that the volunteer service will have to close at the end of July.
17:24If we're not able to raise funds through other means, through kind of public fundraising,
17:30looking at grants and donations and things like that.
17:33So that will obviously have a devastating impact on the people that we support.
17:38I'm sure there are lots and lots of people who kind of depend on your services and see them as
17:42a lifeline.
17:43So what kind of impact might this have?
17:48I personally feel like it will have a huge, devastating impact,
17:53particularly for people who are trying to get transport to their appointments.
17:57We support a lot of people who maybe aren't eligible for patient transport.
18:04We really provide that lifeline for them and enabling them to get to their appointments in a safe and comfortable
18:10way.
18:11Our volunteer transport is one on one and we help them get to their appointments safely,
18:17but also our volunteers have that opportunity just to talk to them, get to know them.
18:23And then with regards to our companionship, I think that has a huge impact as well.
18:29There's so many people who might not have friends or family who live locally to them.
18:36And it's really important to have that person checking in to see how they are.
18:40We can link to our JustGiving page if possible.
18:44Encourage anyone to donate interest in fundraising for us
18:47and wants to get in touch with regards to fundraising would be wonderful.
18:53Now, let's take a look at the weather forecast.
19:00It's going to be a cloudy, cool night across most of the counties.
19:03Temperatures reaching highs of 23 in Dartford, but clear skies across Magate and Dover.
19:09Tomorrow morning, those clouds remain across the county.
19:13Dartford and Dover seeing 18 degrees.
19:15Tunbridge Wells at 16 into the afternoon.
19:18Temperatures warming up, but that cloud still remains.
19:20Highs of 24, lows of 22 by the coast.
19:24And your outlook, those temperatures are set to climb.
19:2626 on Thursday, 27 on Friday.
19:29Peaking on Saturday with 28.
19:31But a bit of cloud coming in, but still wear SPF.
19:40Plans to restore Ashford's historic First World War tank have taken a step forward following a bid for more funding.
19:48The future of the tank was uncertain early this year following Ashford Borough Council's initial conversations with tank restoration organisations.
19:56But now, the National Lottery Heritage Fund has approved a bid from Ashford Heritage and Memorial Charitable Foundation to apply
20:06for more funding.
20:07That was a tongue twister.
20:08Whilst no funding has yet been awarded, Council Leader Noel Ovenden says this is welcome news for those who want
20:14to see the tank protected for future generations.
20:18And Pride Month has come to an end, but the summer celebrations aren't ending anytime soon here in Kent with
20:24Medway Pride set to start this August.
20:27Hilary Cook joined me earlier to discuss the importance of Pride and the busy month she's had putting it all
20:32together.
20:33So we're coming to the end of Pride Month. Are you right, just to tell me why June is so
20:39important for the LGBTQ plus community we've got in Medway and I suppose across the world as well.
20:46Well, I think the importance of Pride is that it shows visibility of the community for those people out there
20:56who might be in small villages, who might not see representation of themselves.
21:02So it's important to give that visibility. And of course, the Pride movement is based on the civil rights movement,
21:12but they fought for civil rights to bring inequality and change laws that were oppressing the LGBTQIA communities.
21:21And Pride is a movement that is still looking to achieve those rights for the parts of the community that
21:30still need to find equality.
21:33Those achievements don't move in one direction. We can win rights and achieve equality and then sometimes the steps back.
21:43So there's always movement in equality rights and the Pride movement is about challenging those rights and it's about being
21:53visible and showing the community that we are there as a whole to support them.
22:00And tell us how you've been celebrating in Medway. Obviously, we've got Medway Pride coming up in August.
22:07So tell me about the things that, you know, we'll be able to see soon.
22:12Well, this month in particular, we have the Medway Pride LGBTQIA plus awards where we recognize people within and without
22:23the community allies about their support.
22:27But coming up in August, the Pride event in Medway is on the 22nd of August.
22:33We shall be having a very colourful and probably loud event marching through Rochester High Street and the parade will
22:43wind its way into Rochester Castle Gardens where an eight hour stage show with some fantastic artists.
22:50So we've got the fabulous Danny Beard. They're headlining along with Black Lace, if you remember them, Big Brothers and
23:01Booty Love.
23:02And then we've got a whole range of acts, including the Spice Girls Experience, who've just been on tour with
23:11Adele.
23:12The parade is free of charge. But if they're wanting to come along to the event in the Castle Gardens,
23:18we are charging for tickets.
23:21And it's a ticket only event. It's a small fee and they can access that through our website, which is
23:28medwaypride.co.uk and they'll find all the information they need there.
23:34Thank you so much, Hilary, for taking the time to speak to us this afternoon.
23:39And finally tonight, did you know Kent's history spans over 400,000 years?
23:46Well, this weekend, Canterbury will be celebrating the county's medieval history at its annual Medieval Pageant.
23:52This year, there's a special focus on the famous Bayeux Tapestry, which may have been created in Canterbury nearly a
23:58thousand years ago.
24:00And our reporter, Ellie Reynolds, has more.
24:02Our family trail has clues to seek and stocks will make miscreant parents meek.
24:09So to Saturday's pageant, make your way. Historic fun throughout the day.
24:20Grab your swords and lutes, because this weekend marks Canterbury's annual Medieval Pageant.
24:27Being one of the oldest counties in England, it's no surprise that Kent has such rich history.
24:32And the pageant is hoping to shed some light on the county's medieval history.
24:39Kent's medieval history can be traced all the way back to the birth of Christianity, with the construction of Canterbury
24:45Cathedral.
24:47Additionally, places such as the Isle of Thanet and Sheppey have seen Viking invasions and settlers.
24:53It's no surprise many are coming together to celebrate the historic time period.
24:58Well, I mean, I think it's almost something of a platitude to say that we need to know our history.
25:02We need to know who we are in order to go forward into the future.
25:05And it's an extraordinary city. It's a city with an incredible history.
25:09And I think that history really is alive and thriving.
25:12And it's a brilliant thing for us to be able to come together and to celebrate it.
25:15The event is organised by Canterbury Business Improvement District, who hope this event will bring in people to support local
25:22businesses and boost the economy as visitors celebrate Canterbury both past and in its present.
25:29We can expect upwards of 30,000 people who will come in.
25:32So it's also an important time for our community, but for our business community as well.
25:37We want to shine a spotlight on those historic venues and attractions, but also want to give people another reason
25:42to come in, do some shopping, grab a bite to eat and really explore all that Canterbury has to offer.
25:47A central part of this year's festivities is the Boa Tapestry.
25:50The pageant will kickstart a project creating a modern interpretation of the piece.
25:56On Saturday, we're inviting a few people to come and work with us to create little things that will go
26:00on the tapestry.
26:01And then over the next 12 months, we're hoping to work with more and more schools and communities.
26:06And we will learn alongside the communities all about the Bay of Tapestry and medieval history.
26:12This will then be a core component of next year's pageant, which marks 1000 years since the birth of William
26:19the Conqueror.
26:20With stone carving, weaving and even a new play, the pageant will take everyone back in time to celebrate such
26:27an interesting time in the county's history.
26:30Etterley Reynolds for KMTV in Canterbury.
26:39And that's all we've got time for this evening, but you've been watching Kent's Nightlife here on KMTV.
26:45Stay around for the Bulletin at 8, but until then, we'll see you soon.
26:50Bye.
27:06Now, we'll see you soon.
27:08attached to you
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