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| | Kingsnorth
Parish Council
Combining Tradition with New Opportunities
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| | HISTORY
AND FUTURE OF THE PARISH COUNCIL
On December 4th 1894, the electors of
Kingsnorth (all men in those days) met in the Schoolroom to elect the first Parish
Council. Eleven candidates were proposed for seven members and election was by
a show of hands. Thereafter the Parish Council was elected annually at the Annual
Parish Meeting. This method of voting continued until 1936 when a secret ballot
was introduced. Some Councillors served for many years, the longest-serving was
elected in 1925 and resigned in 1967. The first women Councillors were elected
just after the war. Councillors are now elected every 4 years in a poll organised
by the Electoral Services Dept. of Ashford Borough Council. |
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The
Local Government Commission completed an electoral review in 2001 and recommended
that Kingsnorth be divided into 5 parish wards instead of 3. At this year's election
2 Councillors were elected for each ward. (The Parish Council should not be confused
with the Parochial Church Council, which has different boundaries.) Councillors
must register their interests in the parish and sign a declaration that they will
observe the Model Code of Conduct, which was adopted in 2002. The
first recorded transaction of the Parish Council was the purchase of a lamp for
the Council use, cost not to exceed 25s, and as late as 1936 reference is made
to lamp oil and a payment to someone to light the lamp before Council meetings.
Electricity came to the village in the late 1920's but it took some time for all
houses and the school to be connected. | |
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number of themes occur in the history of the Parish Council and some of them are
still of concern. One of the first campaigns, started in 1898, was to obtain a
telegraph service in the village Post Office; this was not achieved until 1908.
Unfortunately, the Post Office and Shop on Church Hill had to be closed, but the
Parish Council helped to arrange for a part-time Post Office to be opened in a
room at the Village Hall. There is also still a Shop and Post Office at Stubbs
Cross. | | | |
 | Flooding
in the village was a constant concern of the Parish Council and there are references
every year to overflowing ditches, blocked culverts and pinnocks (a culvert under
a gateway) and overflowing cesspits. The village was not on mains drainage until
after the development of Stanhope in 1965.
Action to avoid flooding is even
more important today with development reaching the edge of the East Stour flood
plain. The Borough and Parish Council seek to minimise this risk when considering
new planning applications and no new development is allowed on the flood plain
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Concern
was also frequently expressed about the state of the local footpaths. All Public
Rights of Way are now marked on a definitve map and the Parish Council reports
any problems to KCC. The maintenance of highways has always been a worry and the
Parish Council maintains a close liaison with the Ashford Highways Unit to report
potholes, overgrown hedges, damaged signs, etc. Councillors are also concerned
to make sure that new roads are designed to reduce speeding and that measures
are taken wherever possible to dissuade drivers from speeding on existing roads.
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events have always been celebrated in the village. The first record is of the
Coronation of Edward VII in 1902 when the Parish Council voted that a sum of money
not exceeding a ½d rate be spent; this amounted to £13.6s.3d. Residents
enjoyed other Coronation and Jubilee celebrations over the years, the most recent
being the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002 when a carnival, village picnic and disco
was held. Recreation
and allotment land is an important element in village life and various areas have
been maintained by the Parish Council for these purposes over the years. The allotments
have now disappeared but the Parish Council owns the playing field behind Kingsnorth
Village Hall and School and financed a footpath link around it to Park Farm.On
the playing field, there is a full-size football pitch and a smaller pitch used
by Kingsnorth Primary School, a modern sports pavilion, a play area for primary
school-age children and picnic tables and benches. With
the rapid growth of development in Kingsnorth, many new issues will arise as well
as those which are of perennial concern. A Parish Plan Steering Group was formed
to identify what sort of services, activities and support are needed in the parish;
to promote local people's involvement in planning and improving services; to identify
open spaces that are needed and valued for community use, etc. A 'wish list' was
produced and submitted to Ashford Borough Council. It is hoped that this will
influence the Local Development Framework, which is in the process of being drawn
up to replace the existing Ashford Local Plan. | | |
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