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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV. I'm Abbey Hooke. Here are your
00:27top stories on Tuesday the 16th of July. More than 20 hospitalised. Full timeline revealed
00:34about the night a teenage girl died at a concert in Margate. It comes amid calls for Dreamland's
00:40licence to be revoked as all drum and bass events in the immediate future have been cancelled.
00:46Increasing concern in Kent. Charity warns of 70% rise in the number of children being
00:53left home alone. I think there is a greater public awareness of young people being left
00:59at home. Making a splash, new sports centre in Raynham opens to the public ahead of the
01:04summer holidays. We've had to take some difficult choices as a council when it's come to our
01:10concessions for swimming. Good evening and first tonight, they were expecting a night
01:28of music but ended up in A&E. On the day where a 17-year-old girl collapsed and died whilst
01:34attending a drum and bass festival at Margate's Dreamland, it's since emerged 21 other young
01:38people were hospitalised at the event after falling ill. That's according to Kent Police,
01:43which has set out an application for the venue's licence to be reviewed. It means in the meantime
01:48all future drum and bass performances have been temporarily banned by the council. Our
01:53report to Bartholomew Hall is at the site in Margate now. Bartholomew, you've been speaking
01:58with some of those who've been at the event, who attended it. What have they told you?
02:04Yeah, Abby, it's been a real mixture of reaction today, especially online. People reacting
02:10to the news that came out around about a day ago now that 21 young people, all under the
02:15age of 18, were hospitalised on that night on the 29th of June who attended that drum
02:21and bass event, as you say there. They've also found out today that all drum and bass
02:27events in the immediate future have now been cancelled. Some people turning their attention
02:32to Dreamland, asking questions of them. How could they allow this to happen in a venue
02:36of such prominence? Others turning their attention and the blame to those bad actors who clearly
02:42decided to bring illicit substances to the event. Now, I have been speaking with Ian
02:49today. He's one of the attendees there. He was actually telling me that he was surprised
02:53that a major incident had even occurred.
02:56I couldn't have enjoyed it any more, to be honest. I just went with the flow of the music,
03:03really. So, to me, I was a little bit surprised when the vast number came out, I must admit.
03:10They've described it as a major incident on the night. You couldn't tell?
03:13No. I think they put out saying they were very close to closing the event or something.
03:18None of that was ever felt like it was going to happen. But, yeah, I mean, I'd like to
03:26say I was shocked at the vast number of people who really were in trouble by the sounds of it.
03:34Now, you heard Ian there saying that the event was close to being cancelled. That was actually
03:38the words of Kent Police, who have released a document which recommends for the licence
03:43which allows Dreamland to put on events like these to be reviewed by Thanet District Council.
03:48They've also, in that document, given us a bit of a timeline from their perspective as
03:52to what happened. We know the event began at 1pm with roughly 7,000 tickets purchased
03:58for the event. Throughout the afternoon, people were being ejected with suspected intoxication.
04:04At 5pm, a man was arrested on suspicion of intent to supply. He was found with illegal
04:10drugs on his person. At 6pm, officers found a 17-year-old boy who had fallen ill. They
04:16called an ambulance for him. And then it was shortly after then, at 5pm, that the 17-year-old
04:21girl who you mentioned there, who we now know is named Emily Stokes, was confirmed
04:26to be deceased. At 7pm, so an hour later, a major incident was finally declared. Officers
04:33considering to close the event and pull the plug, deciding against that because of the
04:38sheer amount of people who were here. But of course, 17-year-old Emily Stokes, who has
04:44died, we don't know the exact circumstances surrounding her death at this stage. A report
04:49is being prepared for the coroner, but her family have been online to describe her as
04:53the kindest person you could ever meet. Bartholomew, thank you very much for those details.
05:01Now, a man from Ashford who wore sunglasses with a built-in camera on a Folkestone beach
05:06has been sentenced for a year and eight months in prison. The police searched John Gulliver's
05:11home on Maidstone Road in Charing and found more devices and recording equipment, including
05:15indecent images of children. The 62-year-old was arrested and admitted multiple offences,
05:20including voyeurism, before being sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court on Thursday. The
05:24camera recording glasses seen on screen now were seized after his arrest. He pleaded guilty
05:29to making indecent images of children, voyeurism and possessing an indecent image. He was also
05:34made the subject of a sexual harm prevention ordeal. Now, next tonight, two days after
05:40Kent watched on as England lost out in this year's Euro final, manager Gareth Southgate
05:45has announced today he'll be stepping down from his role. After more than eight years
05:49at the helm of the national men's team, the former England international oversaw more
05:54knockout match wins than any other manager in the last 50 years. We spoke to people on
05:59Gillingham High Street to get their reaction to his departure. So what do you think of
06:03Gareth Southgate resigning? It's a bit of a shame really. I think he did a lot for English
06:07football and he got us into two finals and a quarterfinal. But to be honest, it's time
06:12for a change. A little bit of a shock, but I think it was on the cards. It was more on
06:19the cards than not. It was time that he went. He was too negative. I think it's about time.
06:25I think over the years, England, they've got far, they've gone to the final, but I don't
06:29think he's got us over the line. Well, he should carry on really. And who do you think
06:34of replacing him? There's a lot of candidates. I think I'll say Eddie Howe. As a Newcastle
06:41supporter, obviously I think Eddie Howe's up there and I think he would do a good job.
06:45We were thinking about Eddie Howe. Eddie Howe, I mean, yeah, I mean, he's young, right? And
06:51I think the England players would take to him. Would you be open to a foreign manager
06:57managing England? Anybody can do as good a job as what he's doing. There seems to be
07:04many people out there, doesn't there, that are English anyway, that can try a foreign
07:08manager. I've had two before. I'm open to that, but whoever wins. We've had foreign
07:12managers in the past and I just think we need to keep it English just for the sake of it.
07:18To be honest, if a manager like Jose Mourinho came in, I don't think that will, you know,
07:24I don't think that will hurt the team. He's a serial winner. I think if a foreign manager
07:28wants to take over like someone like Jurgen or Pip, good luck to him and I think he'll
07:31bring a lot to the game. Lots of speculation about who that next England manager could be.
07:37Well, next night as schools across Kent are starting to shut for the summer, the NSPCC
07:42is reporting a 74% increase in referrals about children being left home alone in the southeast.
07:48The charity's helpline made nearly 600 referrals to local agencies last year and says it could be
07:54down to financial hardship. More parents are working longer hours and childcare can be
07:59expensive. Rebecca Hipkus from the NSPCC explained to me earlier why there's such an increase in
08:06referrals. I think there is a greater public awareness of young people being left at home.
08:13I think we are in an economic situation where more parents are having to work longer hours,
08:19therefore their children are being left at home. And I think the NSPCC helpline has been very
08:27public in saying that if you have concerns about a young person to contact them. There are also
08:33things on their website about how parents can support young people being left at home.
08:37So I think there is a much greater public awareness of young people and the dangers that
08:42are around for them if they are left at home alone. So it's predominantly adults calling
08:48with concerns. Do you hear from many children? Yes, I'm a supervisor at Childline and we get
08:55calls from young people talking about how they feel about being left at home, what the impact is
09:01on them, if they feel that they're ready or not, and a whole load of stuff about what should they
09:08do if there was an emergency. And how worried are you about the summer holidays? For some schools
09:13they've already broken up, for some it's just a week or two away. How concerned are you that
09:18that number could keep on increasing? I think there's definitely a possibility. As you say,
09:23summer holidays for schools are very rare that parents are going to be able to
09:28have that amount of holiday themselves. So if you have support around you, grandparents or
09:36friends who can help you look after you while you're at work, there's definitely going to be
09:40an increase in those reported. And childcare is notoriously really expensive. We speak to a lot
09:47of people on this programme about the cost of it, the cost of living on top of it, but childcare,
09:52particularly expensive, and activities in the summer holidays. Prices are hiked right up because
09:57they know that there's a demand for it with children being off for six weeks or so. What
10:03can parents do if they just can't get childcare? I think the most important thing is to speak to
10:11the young person in your family and find out how they feel about being left alone. There is an age
10:17of kind of 11 or 12 where young people are becoming slightly more independent. They're
10:22looking at transition to high school, maybe, which will involve them being independent in terms of
10:28getting to school, using public transport or school transport. But I think it's very much
10:33dependent on the individual child. Some young people will feel really anxious about that
10:38prospect. And it's really important for parents to be able to acknowledge that and to understand
10:42how that young person is feeling. Do you think that this is a generational divide, slightly? I
10:48know from what my parents have told me, they were left home alone at young ages or they were
10:53out playing with their friends late, when maybe now that's not as socially accepted, do you think?
10:59I think that's definitely true. And I think there was a whole different mindset about leaving young
11:05people at home or just letting them kind of roam around. And, you know, we have to face that
11:10as a society, that those things have changed. Whether that's for the better or for the worse
11:15isn't for me to say, but I think it has had an impact on that kind of school holiday.
11:21As you say, previous generations maybe just hanging out with their friends for the entire day
11:25and nobody being that worried. I think there's a very different mindset.
11:31And in reference to our earlier story, our top story this evening, Dreamland have been
11:35reached out to for a comment, but have refused.
11:40Well, it's time for a quick break now. We'll have more news after the break. See you then.
12:35Thank you.
13:05Thank you.
13:35Thank you.
14:05Thank you.
14:35Thank you.
15:05Hello and welcome back to Kentonite live on KMTV. Now, a multi-million pound project in Raynham is
15:16set to open ahead of the summer holidays. The new Cosington Park Sports Centre, formerly known as
15:21Splashes, includes a wave pool, gym equipment, all they hope to keep accessible. But after free
15:26swimming was cut in Medway, will families find the spare cash for a splash this summer? Daisy Page
15:32reports. 2023 saw the beginning of Raynham's new sports centre. The formerly known Splashes, which
15:39was in Raynham for 30 years, was demolished to make way for a new multi-million pound project,
15:44which had its ceremonial opening today.
15:47People said when Splashes, the original building was in a very difficult place. They wanted to see
15:52it improved and maintained. So we've done that, you know, alongside creating new jobs and a real
15:58opportunity for young and old alike. We've had to take some difficult choices as a council when
16:03it's come to our concessions for swimming. So we are trying to make sure that there are things like
16:09being able to swim for a pound during school holidays and other such concessions. So we are
16:15making it as affordable as possible.
16:16The newly named Cosington Park Sports Centre has reopened with two swimming pools, a gym and a
16:22fitness studio, and will be open ahead of the summer holidays. But how did it match up to its
16:28budget?
16:28So we're really pleased that the development of Cosington Park Leisure Centre has actually come
16:33in under budget, which means that the money that's been saved can potentially be reinvested
16:38in other sports centres across Medway. Obviously that is subject to a paper going to Cabinet,
16:43which will be decided in the coming weeks, but hopefully it means a bit more investment for some
16:47of our other sports centres as well. Here in Medway, where we've got four sports centres that
16:51our council run, to have something of this nature in Gillingham and Raynham, not just serving
16:57residents of Gillingham and Raynham, but the wider Medway community is something we should
17:00all be very proud of.
17:01The centre has also been designed with environmentally friendly features.
17:05As you can see behind me, there is a ball in the swimming pool. Now this pool is bobbing up and
17:10down to create waves, and this is not the only way the centre is being energy efficient.
17:15Solar panels on the roof allow for the pool to be heated, and with the accessibility features,
17:20Medway Council hope it will be a space in which everyone can come and enjoy.
17:23The leisure centre, the sports centre is accessible to everybody who lives in Medway,
17:28as well as who wants to visit the sports centre. So here we have pool lifts, so for people who
17:34need access to go to the pool, they can access through the pool lift, and we have a changing
17:41room. We also have accessible lockers, so it is at different heights, so if people want to
17:48also put their wheelchairs beneath the lockers that they can do it. So we have those
17:54range of facilities to make sure that it is accessible and welcome for everybody who lives
17:59in Medway.
18:00This new addition to Medway hopes to make a splash this summer.
18:04Daisy Page for KMTV.
18:07It's time now for your pick of the papers, taking a look at what's making the headlines
18:11in Kent's newspaper, online and radio. Earlier, I was joined by Jessica Hulks,
18:15who told me about food waste fees in Medway, a drop in apprenticeships across Kent and a
18:21seagull who got stuck in a chimney in Folkestone. Jess, what's our first story this evening?
18:27Some price increases if you want an extra bin.
18:30In Medway, there's an expectation now that you can pay an extra £40 a year to get an extra bin
18:37on top of your 240 litre wheelie bin or two brown sacks and a 23 litre for food waste.
18:44So that's usually free. That's fine. That will still be free next spring. I think they said they
18:48wanted it to be changed. They will add an extra cost so that if you have extra waste, then they
18:53won't have to deal with it in the normal bins. They can do it in the newer bins that cost the £40.
18:59£40 extra for those bins.
19:01Yeah, yeah. But there's some worries about that if people don't want to pay that price,
19:06they'll put it in the normal waste bin and that could cause some increased contamination costs,
19:11which would contradict the reason why they might be putting it in place,
19:14which is to fund the fact that it's usually free, which is rare in the country.
19:17OK, and your next story for us this evening about apprenticeships.
19:22Yes, apprenticeships rates have plummeted a lot over the last few years. 49%, according to the CIPD,
19:29in Kent for small businesses, which is crazy. And they say that only one in two apprentices
19:37complete their studies. So there's obviously some bigger flaws within the system that some say
19:43might take a larger long term scale, like up to 10 years sort of thing to figure out because it's
19:49up to financials, facilities, things like that, that are causing them trouble.
19:53OK, and your final story for us this evening.
19:55This one's a silly story of a seagull who got in some trouble in Folkestone
20:00and it's because they fell down a chimney. Seagulls love roofs and I guess they must
20:05have fallen down one. We don't know why or how, but they did luckily manage to get saved and set
20:10out back in the wild. But there were two fire engines and like a hike crew thing. It was a
20:13whole thing down a residential street. A whole ordeal for the seagull in Folkestone.
20:18Well, luckily he was saved. Yes.
20:20OK, great story, Jess. Thank you very much.
20:23Some of the headlines online there, but turning to business news now from witchcraft shops to
20:28coffee vans and rebuild plans all in and around Maidstone. Here's Hector Lam with your business
20:33roundup.
20:40A new witchcraft and psychic development store named Grimhildr's Kitchen is set to open in the
20:45Royalstar Arcade in Maidstone. Known as the Emporium of Folk Curiosities, its owner, Richard
20:51Tingley, is excited to open a store dedicated to witchcraft, which has run in its family line as
20:57far back as 1772. The store will sell crystals, puppets, spell kits, candles, aromatherapy oils,
21:05herbs and more. Mr. Tingley hopes that Grimhildr's Kitchen will help to dispel some of the
21:11misconceptions surrounding witchcraft. A more unfortunate kind of toil and trouble next to
21:17Maidstone as the Dirty Habit pub in Hollingbourne has been destroyed in a huge fire. A dozen fire
21:23engines were at the scene, with crews spending hours tackling the fire. The road had to be closed
21:28and people living nearby were evacuated from their homes. Fortunately, there were no reported injuries.
21:35A new application has been submitted to convert part of the building into bed and breakfast
21:39accommodation, while still retaining its architectural, historical and archaeological
21:44interest. Work on this community facility is already underway and is scheduled to open early
21:49next year. And finally, from teaching in school to artists and brews, former school boss Carrie
21:56Porter is setting up shop in Bairstead Woodland Trust near Maidstone. Selling a variety of drinks,
22:03pastries and snacks from the petite retreat. A retro blue Citroen H van, the former owner of
22:09Chernow Independent Primary School says that this has always been a dream of hers.
22:14And this has been your Business Roundup.
22:20Now it's time to take a very quick look at the weather.
22:32Tonight is looking pretty mild across Kent, some clouds in parts of the county,
22:35highs of 16 down in Dover. Those clouds spread across the rest of the county on Wednesday
22:41morning, highs of 20 in Canterbury. Some sunshine though, still slightly overcast into the afternoon
22:47but some sunshine down in Folsom there. Highs of 23 in Chatham and here's the outlook for the
22:52rest of the week. Finally, looking a bit like summer except Saturday, that rain expected again.
23:05Now don't forget, you can keep up to date with the latest stories across Kent by logging on to
23:10our website kmtv.co.uk. There you'll find all our reports, including this one about an 81-year-old
23:16from Faversham who says there needs to be better pathways for those on waiting lists
23:21after it took nearly two years to get heart surgery herself.
23:25After a year and a half, Dot's waiting list ordeal is nearly over. The 81-year-old from
23:32Faversham first showed signs of a blockage in her right artery in 2022. Now, after years of
23:41uncertainty, she is two weeks away from vital treatment that will reduce her risk of heart
23:48attacks and strokes. You know, I appreciate there's deserving people on the waiting list before me,
23:54obviously, but to wait eight to nine months, you know, for something that's going to
24:02make such a difference and should be available. It is potentially life-saving, isn't it? Yeah,
24:11yeah. And I was living my best life. You know, retirement is fantastic. And I, you know,
24:18with friends, I was really living my best life. And it would be wonderful to get back to that.
24:24Over the last few months, Dot's condition has gotten worse. She's become increasingly
24:31breathless when leaving the house. And now this garden here is the full extent of her going
24:39outside at all. I do now feel isolated because even socialising is exhausting.
24:47You know, tremendous fatigue, like, you know, literally can't even lift a finger.
24:52And so, yes, socially, it's been almost damaging. In Kent, there are nearly 15,000 people waiting
25:02for heart care and more than a thousand waiting longer than a year. There is appetite for change.
25:1140,000 people have now signed a petition as part of the British Heart Foundation's campaign
25:18to fix what they call a historic heart crisis, calling for better prevention,
25:24timely treatment and more research. You hear from people every day at the British Heart Foundation
25:30that are experiencing long waits for care. And we know that there are over 420,000 people in
25:37England currently on a waiting list for cardiac care. And these long waits can be really dangerous.
25:42So they can increase risk of disability and early death. So it's clear to us that we are
25:47in the grip of a heart care crisis. And really, that is why we've launched the Hearts Need More
25:52campaign, which is seeking to highlight this. Labour have said that cutting wait times and
25:58death from heart disease is a priority for their government. We also reached out to the
26:03Department of Health for a statement. While doc's treatment may be just in the nick of time,
26:09the thousands across Kent still on waiting lists will be watching to see whether health officials
26:15have their fingers on the pulse in the coming months. Oliver Leeders-Saxe for KMTV in Faversham.
26:23That's all we've got time for. You've been watching Kent Tonight live on KMTV. There's
26:27more news made just for Kent throughout the evening with our 8pm news bulletin,
26:31but you can keep up to date on our website as well, kmtv.co.uk of course.
26:36I'll see you again at 8pm, but that's it for now. Bye bye.