Kent Tonight - Friday 12th July 2024
Catch up with all the latest news across your county with Abby Hook.
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00:00Good evening and welcome to Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
00:28I'm Abbey Hook, here are your top stories on Friday the 12th of July.
00:33Suspected murder, woman arrested as human remains found at a home in Canterbury.
00:39And police are warning residents here in St Martins Road to expect an increased police
00:43presence as the investigation continues.
00:46Breaking points, infrastructure fears with proposals for 28,000 new homes in Medway.
00:53We have the planning authority powers if you like, but it's working with developers, it's
00:57working with the other sectors of the community like the NHS.
01:00Fathersham findings, 5,000 year old burial site discovered in Kent farmland.
01:06There is a very large prehistoric community in this area.
01:21First tonight, a woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder in Canterbury after human
01:25remains were found at a house close to the city centre.
01:29The family of a man in his 60s who had been reported missing a week ago have been informed,
01:34although formal identification is yet to take place.
01:37Meanwhile, an increased presence of police and forensic officers have been spotted at
01:41the scene today.
01:42Our reporter Bartholomew Hall is there now.
01:45Bartholomew, what do we know about the man who had been reported missing?
01:50Well, Abby, 65 year old Jeremy Rickards was reported missing one week ago today.
01:57In fact, his family say that they hadn't heard from him weeks prior to that, not since the
02:01start of June, so coming up to a month now since his family last heard from him and of
02:06course they were given that sad update today that human remains had been found at a property
02:10in the road I am now in, St Martins Road.
02:14Of course, as you say there, formal identification is yet to take place, but clearly police making
02:19some sort of a link at this early stage.
02:22One other update to bring you today, as you mentioned there, is that a 50 year old woman
02:26has been arrested on suspicion of murder.
02:29That's as much as we know about her.
02:30She has not been charged and there's no indication as to whether or not that could happen as
02:34the investigation continues, but it does go to show that inquiries are clearly still ongoing.
02:39Since I've been stood here, we've seen forensics teams moving in and out of the property as
02:44well as police officers, vehicles here lined up and down the street where a cordon has
02:50been set up.
02:51I just want to paint a picture for you for the type of area that we're in.
02:55Fairly close to the city centre is St Martins Road.
02:58Just at the end of the road is the Canterbury Christchurch University campus, so as you'd
03:04expect many of these homes occupied by students.
03:07We've been speaking to some of them today who say they are absolutely shocked that this
03:12type of discovery could happen on what is their term time address.
03:16Other residents who live here more permanently have told us that they saw vehicles arriving
03:21as early as last night, so if that is the case, we're coming up to almost a full day
03:26of investigation works now.
03:28One thing's for certain is that that's unlikely to change in the near future.
03:32Police are telling residents here to expect an increased presence as the investigation
03:36continues, but of course, when we have more information, we'll share it here on the programme
03:41or more updates can be read at Kent Online.
03:44Bartholomew, thank you very much for those updates.
03:49And in other news, police were called to Gravesend Gurdwara last night after a reported attack.
03:53Police vehicles were seen lining the street as a male was arrested for attempted murder
03:57outside the place of worship.
04:00Two people were injured.
04:01Well, Daisy Page joins me now in the studio to tell us more.
04:04Daisy, what's the latest?
04:06At ten past eight last night, police were called to the Gurdwara in Gravesend as an
04:11alleged attempted murder.
04:13A male was reported entering the location and attempted to assault people while armed
04:18with a bladed weapon.
04:20While no one was seriously injured, two women required medical attention after receiving
04:24cuts and bruises.
04:26They retreated locally.
04:27A 17-year-old boy from Gravesend has been arrested on the suspicion of attempted murder
04:33and a religiously aggravated public order offence.
04:36Children were reported to be present as there were multiple events taking place yesterday.
04:41And from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., they were serving food as part of their free community kitchen.
04:46It is the largest Gurdwara in Europe and one of the largest outside India.
04:52Council leader John Burden said that they have offered help and support.
04:57And they have added that they speak on the whole of Gravesend community when they say
05:01that they're there for them.
05:03And Daisy, what have we heard from Kent Police as well?
05:06So Kent Police are treating this as an isolated incident.
05:09There are currently nobody else that have been found to be connected with this.
05:14And they have also said that patrols will remain in the area.
05:17And of course, an ongoing situation that we'll keep our viewers up to date with as we get
05:21more information.
05:22Daisy, thank you very much for those details.
05:26Now in less than 20 years, almost 30,000 homes will be built in Medway if proposals from
05:31the council are adopted.
05:32The next stage of the local authorities' local plan consultation is set to open next
05:37Monday.
05:38You could see 50% of development being built on green-filled land to meet targets.
05:43And the Conservative group are worried about the lack of infrastructure to cope with the
05:47potential population rise.
05:48However, Medway Council are keen for people to voice their own views.
05:52Well, our local democracy reporter, Gabriel Morris, has more.
05:57Medway has a growing population.
06:00The average house price here, nearly nine times higher than the average wage.
06:05And it's said that number won't improve without new properties.
06:08Well, proposals from the council could see more than 28,000 by 2041.
06:14But opposition councillors are worried that infrastructure just isn't here.
06:18It's a struggle to get any service, to be fair.
06:21Access to GPs is a big problem.
06:24The Medway Hospital is still not providing a good enough service to residents.
06:30You go up to Medway Hospital, getting parked up there, accessing the hospital is a real
06:34problem.
06:35And, you know, but it's also things like primary schools.
06:39So where are these children going to school?
06:42Cabinet members admit that infrastructure currently isn't up to scratch to meet future
06:46demand.
06:47And they say they'll be reliant on external funding to meet this.
06:51That needs to be coming from the developers, from government and from an improving economy.
06:55Those are the elements that bring forward the money to spend on infrastructure.
06:59And we're working on all three of those aspects.
07:02As a local authority, we set the rules on where development takes place.
07:05We have the planning authority powers, if you like.
07:08But it's working with developers.
07:10It's working with the other sectors of the community, like the NHS, with the education
07:13authorities and all those, working with the transport authorities as well.
07:17These proposals are part of Medway's local plan.
07:20After the last cabinet meeting, it was agreed to move into the next consultation phase.
07:25Authorities use these plans as a blueprint for future development.
07:28I wish some of the sites in Capstone, which have already got permission, weren't there.
07:36And why have they got permission?
07:38Because we didn't have an up-to-date local plan.
07:40Because I think it's about looking at Medway as a whole.
07:43And not Medway as a whole today, Medway as a whole in five and 10 and 15 years' time.
07:50The council are keen for locals to comment on their proposals, with a particular interest
07:54to hear from younger generations, who the authorities say are the future of the area.
07:59Gabriel Morris in Medway.
08:03Now don't forget, you can keep up to date with your latest stories across Kent by watching
08:07us at 5.30 every night, but also by logging onto our website, kmtv.co.uk.
08:13There you'll find all our latest reports, including this one going behind the scenes
08:17at Leeds Castle, ahead of their annual classical concert this weekend.
08:23The stage is set, well, almost, for this year's Leeds Castle concert.
08:29Under the famous backdrop of the grounds in Maidstone, expect a host of classical music
08:34and four new solo acts this weekend.
08:37The weather may not be on side right now, but a few rain dances up on stage should help,
08:43so the team are busy setting up.
08:45It's a large, open-air classical concert.
08:48We have a Spitfire flying over, halfway through.
08:51We have fireworks, we have cannon.
08:54We have about 8,000 or 9,000 people on the banks behind you, and a bit of patriotism
08:59as well.
09:00Land of Hope and Glory, Royal Britannia, last night at the proms.
09:02You can see behind you, we're on day three now.
09:04We started on Monday morning.
09:06It takes about five days to get everything together, so hopefully by 8am on Saturday
09:11morning we're kind of ready, so we've got a few hours just to make things look pretty.
09:16But we've been doing this for a few years now, it's a fairly tried and tested formula.
09:19So five days to build everything, one day to do the concert, and then two days to take
09:23everything down.
09:25Perhaps a well-oiled machine to put together, but how important is this event for the local
09:30community and economy?
09:32It's wonderful to be back.
09:33I think this is our third year back since Covid, and it's just an extraordinary event.
09:38I mean, there really is nothing quite like live music, and especially having it in a
09:43setting like that, at Leeds Castle, it's so magnificent, and I know the orchestra always
09:48enjoy it.
09:49And it's such a great community event as well.
09:51We have families there, we have all kinds of generations, and we really try very hard
09:57to do a programme that caters across generations and for everybody who turns up.
10:02With this event being built on the foundations of British culture and heritage, a bit of
10:08wet weather shouldn't deter Kent's classical concert community.
10:12Abbey Hook for KMTV, Leeds Castle.
10:17And of course, the Leeds Castle concert happening this weekend, and we'll bring you more coverage
10:20from the weekend of events on Monday.
10:23Now, just before we go to a very quick break, let's take a look at what the weather's looking
10:27like for that concert.
10:29Well, some clear skies tonight.
10:37Rain down in Folkestone, temperatures between 11 and 13 degrees across Kent.
10:42Tomorrow morning, for the start of the Leeds Castle concert, it's remaining dry, the most
10:46important thing, but cloudy right across the county.
10:48A bit of sunshine down in Folkestone by the afternoon, but that rain coming in too.
10:55And here's your outlook for Kent.
10:56Sunday, rain again.
10:57Monday, the same.
10:58Tuesday, a little bit of sunshine.
11:14Well, now it's time for a very short break, but coming up, 5,000-year-old treasures have
11:20been dug up in Faversham.
11:22Members of the Kent Archaeological, I can't say that word, Society say it's crucial in
11:27understanding the history of Kent, with some surprise settlers making it all the way to
11:31the county.
11:32Well, we'll have more with our reporter, Finn McDermott, coming up after the break.
11:36And stick-fighting.
11:37Well, the students from Gravesend are competing for Great Britain, if they can find the funding.
11:43All that and more in just a few minutes' time.
14:52Hello and welcome back to Kent Tonight, live on KMTV.
15:16Now, most of what we know of Kent's history comes from texts like the Canterbury Tales
15:21and the Doomsday Book, but that can only take historians so far.
15:24When a farming estate in Faversham wanted to know why large mounds were protruding out
15:29of their land, the Kent Archaeological Society leapt at the chance to dig up undisturbed
15:34earth.
15:35And what they found makes Kent much older than it looks.
15:38Finn McDermott went along to find out.
15:41Kent is England's oldest county, as many know.
15:44But the home of the Canterbury Tales, Rochester Cathedral and Leeds Castle might be even older
15:49than we think.
15:50While Kent might look like a field just south of Faversham, it's actually home to one of
15:53the biggest archaeological dig sites in the country.
15:56And what experts have found here is sure to rock the archaeological world.
16:00Kent is certainly a historic place, but much of it might be where we can't see it.
16:05Right now, I'm inside one of the archaeological excavations down here in the Leeds Court Estate
16:10just south of Faversham.
16:12Stringman's Farm in the 800-year-old Leeds Court Estate had excavations started on it
16:16several years ago.
16:18But three nearby sites have started to be dug into as well, with a team of volunteers
16:22and students from the Kent Archaeological Society since Easter.
16:26We were working at the time on another part of the estate with Kent Underground Research
16:31Group and through them they suggested we get a hold of Kent Archaeological Society to ask
16:36for their expertise.
16:38And that started a journey with KAS along with the fact that we had had some metal detecting
16:44rallies here that had unearthed five Bronze Age hoards.
16:49Experts believe the site was once a burial site or ceremony ground, dating as far back
16:53as 3000 or 1500 BC, the Neolithic or Bronze Age period.
17:00To put this in perspective, the Neolithic Age was the cusp of human society, when people
17:04learned to cultivate plants and domesticate animals for food, moving away from the hunter-gatherer
17:09structure.
17:10Now in their excavations 50 centuries later, the team discovered chippings of flint that
17:15show the remains of the process of making stone tools, as well as fragments of rare
17:19decorated pottery that are older than the Romans coming to Kent.
17:24And most interestingly, they found evidence of prehistoric human cremations.
17:29It was never really believed that Neolithic people occupied this part of Kent to any great
17:34extent.
17:35And what we've done through our excavations over the years, a combination of professional
17:41archaeologists and volunteer archaeologists, we've been able to suggest or even show that
17:48there is a very large prehistoric community in this area.
17:54They're not living here, what they're doing is they're burying their dead here.
17:58The next steps are key for the society.
18:01They'll spend months reviewing and archiving the information, making sure that Kent further
18:05earns its spot in our country's history books.
18:08Finn McDermott for KMTV.
18:12Next tonight, the Port of Dover is warning that this summer could be exceptionally busy
18:15with cross-channel traffic set to increase by almost a third, and it's because of the
18:20Paris Olympics.
18:22The extra 30% is even on top of the seasonal spike seen at the start of the school holidays.
18:27The port's buffer area, where they hold waiting traffic, will have less room because of construction
18:31work for the new border checks that begin in October.
18:34But bosses say they're making contingency plans and are providing advice to those making
18:39the journey.
18:40Now, NHS trusts across Kent and Medway paid out £76 million in negligence claims for
18:46childbirth and maternity failings.
18:49The figures came from an investigation by law firm Legal Expert.
18:53It found that over the last five years, the four NHS trusts in Kent have made large payouts
18:59because of 93 claims.
19:01Dartford and Gravesham NHS trusts paid the most in damages at £24.9 million for 15 claims.
19:09Medway NHS Foundation Trust paid out the second highest amount with £20.2 million for 21
19:14claims.
19:15Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells paid out £20.1 million for 21 claims as well.
19:20And East Kent Hospital's University Trust paid out the least amount of money but had
19:24the highest number of claims across Kent at 36.
19:27Collectively, the trusts have apologised and say they are dedicated to improving safety
19:31for parents and babies.
19:33More on the story on Kent Online.
19:36It's now time for your pick of the papers, taking a look at what else is making the headlines
19:40in Kent's newspapers, online and radio.
19:43To talk about a couple's home they say is hazardous to their health, a carpet giant
19:49that's looking like it may go bust, and a day filled with flying creepy crawlies.
19:53I was joined earlier by Alex Gay.
19:56Alex, what can you tell me about your first story this evening?
19:58Looks like some pretty bad mould.
20:00So a couple in Maidstone have been complaining, saying that damp is affecting their health
20:05pretty adversely and it feels like no one really wants to help.
20:08So the pair are Mandy Croucher and her wife Donna.
20:11They've lived in this place for nearly two years.
20:13They're complaining about black mould that is on the ceilings.
20:16They're complaining about possible asbestos being found in their tiles.
20:21There's a draught coming in through the windows which means that they have to cover themselves
20:26pretty heavily when they're in their own home.
20:28Their landlord, Landlord Golding Homes, say that they are addressing the issues, including
20:33the asbestos.
20:34They say that no asbestos has been found on the tiles.
20:37But the couple still aren't happy.
20:39According to their GP, it's adversely affecting their health.
20:42She has a problem with asthma and a lung condition.
20:46And according to their GP, that this isn't going to improve really until they move into
20:49a new home.
20:52According to Golding, the landlords, they say that they are going to replace the windows
20:57and the doors within the next year and that they are addressing the issues.
21:01OK, and your second story for us this evening, a very famous name we all know.
21:06So unfortunately, Carpet Right are set, it's looking like they're going to go into administration.
21:12So this is a huge store.
21:14They employ about 1,800 people all across the UK, but it's not just a national issue,
21:19it's also a local issue.
21:21They have stores in Ashford, Canterbury, Dartford, Gillingham.
21:25So it's quite a big issue for Kent as well.
21:28With their business set to go into administration, there's going to be a panel of experts that
21:31are going to be put in charge.
21:32They're going to be looking for buyers or people who will get emergency funding to take
21:38them out.
21:39Apparently, one of the issues with Carpet Right is that homeowners are looking for hardwood
21:44flooring rather than carpets in their home.
21:48Less of a demand for the business.
21:49Less of a demand and unfortunately, they were also subject to a cyber attack recently.
21:53OK, and then a very interesting final story, flying ants.
21:57So I've never heard of this before, but apparently there is a day where a swarm of flying ants
22:03come out to essentially harass everyone.
22:06So what occurs is, due to conditions recently, a warm, humid climate, it's pretty conducive
22:13towards mass breeding of these insects.
22:16And what happens is, the queen of the ants, on a specific day, leaves the colony, causing
22:22all of these ants, all of these young male ants, to come out and follow her.
22:25So on this one particular day, all of these ants come out, they swarm the public.
22:30Thankfully, they're not very harmful, so if you just keep your windows and doors closed,
22:34everything will be fine.
22:35Alex, thank you very much.
22:37Well, now to sports and of course, football, with a buzz across Kent for this weekend's
22:42Euro final, where the Lions take on Spain.
22:44But our Lionesses are looking to qualify for their Euro 2025 campaign tonight.
22:50Maidstone's Alessia Russo says England have two massive games ahead.
22:54The defending European champions will face the Republic of Ireland tonight at 8pm.
22:59Russo says it's nice to have the boot on the other foot watching the men's and is looking
23:04forward to being backed by the England fans as well.
23:08Loving being a fan.
23:10When I have been not on camp, we've been watching the games out with friends and family and
23:14I think it's so nice to kind of soak that atmosphere up because when we're in tournaments
23:19and stuff, you never really get to experience it as a fan.
23:23But yeah, I've been loving it.
23:24I've been watching pretty much every game.
23:26When you walk out in a stadium and it's full of Lionesses fans, it's just really nice and
23:31it creates a feeling within the team and makes you realise that, yeah, there's more to it
23:37than just the football and that we're going out there with the support of everyone around
23:42us.
23:44For me and I can speak for all the players, we love playing in front of our home crowd
23:49and they're always so loud and back us all the way.
23:52Well, we're certainly backing them and the men's team as well tonight and this weekend.
23:56From Gravesend to Great Britain, the stick fighters are going to the World Championships.
24:01Family martial arts started small and slowly gained traction and a few medals.
24:06It supports young people in the sport and this latest adventure, they hope, will put
24:10stick fighting on the map.
24:11But it comes at a cost.
24:13So the club is asking for more funding so that as many of the students as possible can
24:17represent their country.
24:21These are stick fighting students from Family Martial Arts in Gravesend and they have been
24:24given an amazing opportunity, partaking in the Global Stick and Blade Alliance World
24:28Championship as part of Team GB.
24:31Well, we started the team about two years ago.
24:35Everyone wasn't expecting much from us because no one had heard from us.
24:39We actually did quite well and we started getting some gold medals and then gradually
24:42over time we've done all right and about two months ago I got an email from the head
24:48of the GSBA, the Global Stick and Blade Alliance in the UK asking us to join Team GB to fight
24:56in the World Tournament in Poland.
24:58My eyes were welling up when I opened that email.
25:01You don't often get other people that you respect like the heads of that system or recognising
25:11your students for being world class.
25:15The opportunity this gives them, I was just thinking about, also they get invited to the
25:22squad training by the best people in the country.
25:25Even if they didn't compete, they could join the squad training and learn from the best
25:29people.
25:30Yeah, I was well chuffed.
25:31Travelling to Poland and competing comes at a price, one that unfortunately not every
25:36student can afford.
25:38We're trying to get sponsorship for the fighters to pay for the flights, the accommodation
25:46and their tournament entry because everyone's struggling at the moment.
25:50I didn't want to squeeze the school's parents or family members, just ask them.
25:59So we're trying to get corporate sponsorship.
26:02Some of the fighters can afford to do it, but it's just for the ones that can't, I don't
26:10want them to not have that opportunity because we couldn't make it happen.
26:16Well that's all we've got time for this evening, you've been watching Kent Tonight live here
26:25on KMTV.
26:26There's of course more news made just for Kent throughout the evening and we'll be back
26:29at 8pm with our news bulletin.
26:31But that's all from me and the Kent Tonight team, have a wonderful weekend and it is coming
26:36home.
26:37See you tomorrow.
26:38Bye bye.