Sittingbourne

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".

Last week, between Monday 3rd and Sunday 9th of August, a newly installed Defibrillator was stolen from a Kent Fire and Rescue vehicle at the Sittingbourne Fire Station on St Michaels Road.

Anyone with any information that could help investigators is asked to please contact Kent police on telephone number 101 and quote the Crime Number: XY/027675/15 or alternatively they can call Kent Crimestoppers free (from any landline) and anonimously on 0800 555 111.

Sittingbourne Fire crews are at the scene of a fire involving approximately 30 tonnes of baled hay this afternoon.

Three fire engines and a bulk water carrier have been sent to deal with the fire along with an all terrain vehicle (ATV). The ATV is an eight wheeled vehicle which can get firefighters and equipment to remote areas that would be difficult for a fire engine to reach.

Local traffic is not be affected by the incident.

The speed limit on the Sheppey Crossing was lowered from 70mph to 50mph from 10.00am this morning (Wednesday 22nd July).

The "emergency" speed cut follows a pre-inquest review in to the deaths of Deborah Roberts and her 8-year-old son Marshall on the crossing last July.

Mid Kent and Medway Coroner, Patricia Harding wrote to Highways England urging them to take immediate action.

Picture Courtesy of Andy Hudson - Sittingbourne.me.

Organisers of Tunstall Primary School's Summer Fete were left shocked and distressed after stock and prizes for their event were stolen in a burglary.

It is thought that thieves broke-in to the school's storeroom on Thursday (2nd July) evening and stole soft drinks, alcohol and many of the raffle prizes, most of which had been donated and gifted by parents over the previous year.

Sittingbourne has been gridlocked again this morning, following two accidents on the M2 motorway earlier.

The first accident happened just after 7:45am coastbound between Junctions 5 (Sittingbourne) and 6 (Faversham) and involved four vehicles, whilst the second, involving two cars, was on the same section of the motorway but on the Londonbound carriageway at 7:50am.

A Kent Police spokesperson has confirmed that there were no serious injuries involved but traffic remains very busy in and out of Sittingbourne.

Gordon Henderson, Member of Parliament for Sittingbourne and Sheppey, has welcomed the news that post office services are finally being restored in Bredgar.

The village Post Office was closed in February following a burglary and had been set to re-open on Saturday (23rd May) but encountered some broadband connection problems. These have now been resolved and the Post Office will be re-opening from 9.15am tomorrow (Wednesday 27th May).