Go Folkestone received a grant from Folkestone Town Council last November for a town centre recycling collection. This works very well in Hythe. Various things slowed us down. Notably we had money for 2 large wheelie bins but nowhere in the town centre to put them. Shops turned out to have no spare space despite many approaches, and our essentially urban members had no convenient storage land. We believe this is now sorted and that the relevant Folkestone and Hythe officer will give absolute confirmation of a kind offer when back off holiday at the end of the month. We will then be buying 2 wheelie bins (and some smaller equipment such as a handcart) in the first week of September and placing them immediately in a Council location. Folkestone Rotary also are helping. We can then wheel stuff from Sandgate Road or Guildhall Street to the bins when we get going, probably with the help of Napier volunteers.
The actual details of our collection of small electricals is set out on our colourful flyers and should be taking place from mid-September. Volunteers for 2.5-hour duties every Saturday are still welcome, however. Please contact info@gofolkestone.org.uk and we will have our rota secretary contact you and perhaps put you on a WhatsApp group or just take a phone number. Some volunteers will need to pull a cart but most will be chatting to people about recycling and checking and sorting in a very simple, light way e.g. taking off the wires or taking out the mobile phones for separate treatment.
We are working with other organisations where they put up volunteers or can take equipment or do repairs. This may include local charity shops and the Sunflower House. We are non-political and try to avoid any who-does-what disputes. I, Richard Wallace, stepped down as chair of Go Folkestone in July for personal reasons but will be there many Saturdays. After all, you can shop in town before or afterwards. Join us.
There is a Folke Fair on Saturday 24th August in Sandgate Road and Guildhall Street from 11.00am. We will probably be in Guildhall Street. Say hello and join our volunteer effort.
Don’t forget the Grace Hill Library consultation is still live. You can find it online or in the substitute library in Grace Hill. There seems little doubt that people, and Go Folkestone, would prefer the Creative Folkestone scheme set out in a couple of our magazines and elsewhere. Creative Folkestone would own the building, to use for studios, galleries, creative businesses etc and lease the ground floor back to KCC for the library. If this is financially affordable it keeps the lovely, listed building and the library, and enlivens the area. But having a new library in the high street i.e. Sandgate Road, as Kent County Council prefer is not without advantage, in my opinion, either for a library or for a high street that needs more magnets. The Go Folkestone magazine will accept articles for and against.
The District Council which owns KCC’s preferred building, the Art Deco Folca, is not in favour because it wants Folca for its own council buildings, expected eventually to move from the tired 1970ish Civic Centre. So, the heavily indebted KCC may not get what it wants. We will do a brief submission supporting Creative Folkestone’s scheme.
What was said on 1st August about Folkestone Sports Centre (see below) is still mostly relevant. Local cllrs such as Mike Blakemore and Belinda Walker have been very helpful in answer to our recent queries but can only say that decisions will have to await details of the administrators’ report. And importantly a survey of the structure of the Sports’ Centre. How much debt, how viable etc. There is apparently little actual obligation to provide these services in a town of any specific size even for children’s swimming.
Postscript: I have copied the Liberal Democrat 30th July news on the Folkestone Sports’ centre in Radnor Park. Many locals will not be aware that the Sports’ Centre was an independent charitable trust set up many years ago in cooperation with the Folkestone Estate, the main landowner in that area. It was not a Council sports’ centre. This made it very unusual. But the latter must be the most likely eventual outcome, either by direct takeover or replacement. The former must be most likely as a town of Folkestone’s size should have a sports’ centre, but the District Council and County Council have financial troubles and won’t be able to spirit up a replacement. In the very short term, the FSC will presumably re-open ‘in administration’ as all political parties will want to keep it going with some form of emergency grant.
The main worry for Folkestonians will be twofold. The lack of a sports’ centre, and the danger of the entire area including the golf course being built on. This is a real danger viz the building of 12 houses on Searle Close at the corner where the golf course meets Cornwallis Avenue. This was a sale that helped the FSC keep going. But the Estate has an interest in all the land and indeed shared in the proceeds of that land sale.
Subject to what the committee and the Go Folkestone members think, I would have thought Go Folkestone must work with the Council, AFRA, NFS and others to publicise sensible non-partisan solutions. These will probably have to include some limited development to keep the money people happy. But we must surely fight for the putting/golf course and perhaps an opened up public walk along the Pent Stream in that area? The red brick 1920s? parts of the centre, which are old golf course buildings of modest quality might be a part to be redeveloped residentially without undermining the Green Belt or Green Lung that we all want. Please join the conversation and perhaps write your own article for the next Go Folkestone magazine.
Lib Dems …….‘’This evening we have heard the hugely sad news the independent Folkestone Sports Centre Trust has called in the administrators and ceased trading. We await to hear from the administrators about when the centre might reopen, and what facilities it will then provide.
In the meantime, our thoughts are particularly with the staff of the Trust who learned last night the centre was closing.
https://www.folkestonesportscentre.co.uk/’’
Richard Wallace
P.S. Copies of our recycling publicity: Recycling Long Version / Recycling Short Version
The longer one has the wrong location, outside Folca, not Guildhall Street. But it does thank everybody that has helped out at more length than the easily printed and distributed short one which is preferred. And it has a great picture of the oldest part of our town by Tony Hill. So I’ve forwarded it. Please come along on Saturday morning and say Hello.
See also Go Folkestone recycle project.