Flooding in Eynsford

Flooding in Eynsford High Street near Gibson's Place and the bus stop has been a serious problem for a number of years. It has caused significant difficulties for local residents and businesses, such as Norman's the Butchers. I have at a number of points worked with Kent Highways officers to seek both a diagnosis of the problem and ultimately a solution.

A CCTV survey of the area was carried out last year, and it identified that the outfall (ultimately going into the River Darent), which is linked to the foundations of Gibson's Place, is damaged. Officers have been in touch with the landowner, Apex Eynsford Management, to agree solutions.

The current proposal is to put in an extra catch pit in the area by the lay by, and then connect this to an existing chamber. From there it will connect to and discharge into the river. I understand that KCC's drainage engineer for the area will be meeting contractors to discuss the project early next week. At this point there is neither full confirmation of the project (which would require significant traffic management), nor a date, but there is at least some prospect of tackling this long-standing problem.

Something a bit different ... Government academy plans

By and large, I have kept this blog pretty local - I have occasionally touched on wider Kent issues, including aspects of my work in education, health and (earlier) broadband, but the main focus has remained on Darent Valley matters.

This morning I'll make a bit of an exception, though. The government's plans in a recently published White Paper to require every school in the country to become an academy by 2020-22 have stirred a lot of concern and opposition. As widely reported in the media - including the Daily Mail, the BBC and the Guardian - that opposition has included many Conservatives, especially those in local government.  In my role as Cabinet Member for Education at KCC, I was one of those who expressed concern.

The result was that I had a rather busier than expected Easter weekend, with two national TV interviews, and I was then invited by the website Conservative Home to set out my thoughts on why the government's plans are flawed.

You can find the article here. As you will see, I am far from hostile to academies, and the thinking behind many of the academy freedoms. But I do object to compulsion and the imposition of a uniform model on schools. There are also big questions - currently unanswered - as to how the capacity for a large number of Multi-Academy Trusts, able and willing to take the huge number of (chiefly) primary schools across the country who have not yet shown any wish to convert to academy status, will be brought into being. In Darent Valley, we have seven primary schools, none of which is currently an academy - and all of which would be required to convert under these plans, whatever their wishes.

Crockenhill 20 mph zone takes shape

As part of the range of schemes aimed at reducing speeding in the heart of Crockenhill, a 20 mph zone has been established. The signage that supports this comprises signs and roundels at different entry points to the centre of the village, in Cray Road, Green Court Road, and Eynsford Road, as well as in Stones Cross Road, Church Street and Old Chapel Road.

Most of this has now been installed. However, there were some difficulties in finding a site that did not inconvenience residents for a sign in Eynsford Road. However, this appears now to have been resolved and a satisfactory site found: the sign should go in early next week. In addition, some High Friction surfacing is due to be installed in Stones Cross Road by the school, but this will require a road closure and will not take place until the next school holidays in May.

These works have been paid for from my Combined Member Fund. This leaves the one remaining issue of installation of granite setts or an equivalent that can be put in without disrupting existing utilities under the road. I hope to post more news on this soon.

Steve Armstrong, community warden

Steve Armstrong, KCC's Community Warden for Eynsford, Farningham and Crockenhill, retires this week.

I have worked a lot with Steve over a number of years and he has been a huge asset to both the County Council and to the communities that he has served and where he is a well-known figure. A lot of the very strong reaction from Darent Valley Parish Councils to the Community Warden consultation in 2014 reflects the value put on Steve's work.

There has also been a lot of concern as to when and how a successor will be appointed. Having discussed the issue with Parish Councils, I took it up with both my Cabinet colleague, Mike Hill, and with the officers at KCC responsible for the warden service.

The difficulty is that recruitment and training of Community Wardens takes place in cohorts rather than on an individual basis, in part because of cost and in part to fit in with the schedules of partners in community safety such as Kent Police. However, officers have undertaken to give a clear timeline for the next round of recruitment as soon as possible. In the meantime, support for the communities that Steve has served will be provided (on, I understand, a proactive rather than a merely reactive basis) from wardens serving in Sevenoaks District and working with the local Community Safety Unit.

I will continue to monitor this with the aim of ensuring that a replacement is found as soon as possible, and that good cover is provided until then. In the meantime, I'm due for a coffee with Steve to thank him and wish him a happy retirement.