Sittingbourne

Pictured: Gordon Henderson MP with two Iwade Primary School children, Edward Milham and Connie Gambell.

Local anti-litter charity, Litter Angels, has installed two new litter bins in Iwade - one outside Costcutter on Ferry Road and one in Dunlin Walk, opposite the primary school.

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of theft following a high-speed police chase on the M2 earlier today (Wednesday 6th January).

Kent Fire and Rescue Service were called to a fire in a first floor bedroom of a semi-detached property on Purple Emperor Grove in Iwade earlier this afternoon (Friday 1st January).

On arrival fire crews found a bedroom on fire and used breathing apparatus, a hose reel jet, thermal imaging camera and a ventilation fan to tackle the blaze and clear the property of smoke.

The fire was accidental and it's believed it was caused by a cable, similar to a USB cable, that was plugged in to the power where the wire insulation had completely being burnt off.

The family of an 18-year-old woman, who died after collapsing and falling onto the tracks at Sittingbourne railway station on Monday (2nd November) morning, have paid tribute to her.

Sophie Lintott, from Sittingbourne, sadly died of her injuries in hospital yesterday (Tuesday 3rd November) at Kings College Hospital in South East London.

Swale Detectives have charged two men in connection with alleged distraction burglaries in the local area.

Police made two separate arrests after receiving reports that people had tricked their way into homes to steal items. The first arrest was made after officers responded to an incident in Foxley Road, Sittingbourne at around 2.35pm, on Friday 23rd October. Joseph Smith, aged 34, of Lucks Lane, Chart Sutton, was charged with two counts of burglary and an attempted burglary with intent to steal.

Southeastern services into Victoria and St Pancras from Sittingbourne station were hit by major delays during this morning's rush hour, after an incident at the station just after 8.00am.

A member of the 2nd Sittingbourne Guides is celebrating after receiving the highest accolade for Guides - the Baden-Powell Challenge Award.

Jade Dowsett, from Sittingbourne, chose to complete a range of exciting activities to achieve the award, including playing life-size Monopoly around Canterbury while away on her adventure weekend and Co-ordinating and presenting a fashion show with her fellow Guides.

Local Taekwondo competitor Will Tumber has come back from the British Taekwondo National Championships with a gold medal.

The Championships were held at the National Cycling Centre in Manchester on Saturday (12th September) and showcased the development of cadet and junior athletes and their progression as members of the national squad.

14-year-old Will is a Brorden Grammar student and was a previous recipient of a grant from the Swale Youth Development Fund and is a member of the GB Taekwondo Cadet Team.

Police have launched an appeal for witnesses after a 51 year old Sittingbourne motorcyclist died on the A2 London Road in Bapchild on Sunday (6th September).

Kent Police told SFM News that a blue and silver Suzuki motorbike was travelling along the A2 in the direction of Teynham when it was involved in a collision with a silver Volkswagen Jetta at the junction with Hempstead Lane just after 10am. Emergency services, including Kent Air Ambulance attended but the biker died at the scene.

Sittingbourne's newly cleaned War Memorial has finally been unveiled from it's scaffolding shroud.

Co-operative Funeralcare donated their local Monumental Mason, Steve Stechfield (pictured above,) to do the clean on behalf of Swale Borough Council at no cost.

Nuala O'Donoghue (also pictured above), the Community Liaison Organiser at the Co-operative Funeralcare, told SFM News that the "Co-operative Funeralcare increased the number of Masons working on the project to three which meant that the clean was completed in just four days".