The Month on May 2014 led up to the 22nd May Election Day and Night. It was a lot of walking and door knocking plus my usual and regular activities of organising the Headcorn Youth Forum which entails ensuring I am available and/or I have other volunteers to run activities on 3 occasions per week at this time of the year.
Then I also have Parish Council roles, plus I am a member of "Locality" an organisation to build strength in local places and organisations that serves for the benefit of them. I am also in training to be a Care Quality Commission/CQC team member that takes up some of my time and I have responsibility for my 84 year old mother. So life is always busy. ( I also love some R&R with my partner Eileen, but that tends to involve visits throughout Kent; we just love our home county, but we probably have a bias to Whitstable, and other time out in France-well it is nearer than the rest of the UK!)
On Mondays we have Boxing in the Scout Hut - its actually Training, Keep Fit and learning techniques for 8 to 18 year olds. It keeps them fit and healthy, gives them some disciplines and is NOT aggressive contact sport, but gives them some fun especially when we "sash box" which is essentially competitive defensive movements to defend your sash and grab the other persons sash thats tied around them. (On Thursday the 8th May we joined the Beavers/Scouts and demonstrated sash boxing and had some fun for an hour with them at their invite and then as a result got invited to several fetes and fairs;all good promotion or fund raising activity!)
On Wednesdays we have a social evening, very little is actually organised so they can just mix and chat, but invariably we have some balls or badminton rackets and end up playing sponge football or rounders at the Scout Hut or on Hoggs Bridge Green.
And on Fridays during the summer months, once we have got light enough and weather permitting, we play "community" football on the main village Days Green with the children from the primary school from 3.30pm until about 6.30pm, when the younger children have left and the group is mainly older ones. Though some young ones insist on staying! That means we need more vigilance and good volunteers.
Despite the need to get round the entire Headcorn Ward and either knock on doors and post leaflets for the Election I also had 3 hospital appointments at Kings College Hospital in London during May and that usually takes some time!
But I managed to get a few volunteers to help in Ulcombe, Grafty Green and Hawkenbury and some parts of the Headcorn village area whilst I'd work on all the "targeted voters". That still amounted to a lot for one person-with a very bad leg! Headcorn is a 26 sq mile Ward and there are many out-of-the-way places.
As the 22nd loomed I was getting desperately tired-and pained-but win or lose I did have some plans after that Election, all purely pleasure, knowing how much energy and stress it may cause.
The Election campaign brought up many issues that were mainly related to the Local Plan or issues around it. I have to say there were a lot of people who felt it was an agreed "done deal" and that plans were cast in stone, as per the Consultation evening that took place in the Village hall some weeks previously. I knew I had my work cut out as at this stage as it is a CONSULTATION that has some way to go before it is certain, and I personally have objections and concerns to the most part of it, where it affects the Headcorn Ward. I intend to play my part, if elected, to make my concerns well known.
Then I also have Parish Council roles, plus I am a member of "Locality" an organisation to build strength in local places and organisations that serves for the benefit of them. I am also in training to be a Care Quality Commission/CQC team member that takes up some of my time and I have responsibility for my 84 year old mother. So life is always busy. ( I also love some R&R with my partner Eileen, but that tends to involve visits throughout Kent; we just love our home county, but we probably have a bias to Whitstable, and other time out in France-well it is nearer than the rest of the UK!)
On Mondays we have Boxing in the Scout Hut - its actually Training, Keep Fit and learning techniques for 8 to 18 year olds. It keeps them fit and healthy, gives them some disciplines and is NOT aggressive contact sport, but gives them some fun especially when we "sash box" which is essentially competitive defensive movements to defend your sash and grab the other persons sash thats tied around them. (On Thursday the 8th May we joined the Beavers/Scouts and demonstrated sash boxing and had some fun for an hour with them at their invite and then as a result got invited to several fetes and fairs;all good promotion or fund raising activity!)
On Wednesdays we have a social evening, very little is actually organised so they can just mix and chat, but invariably we have some balls or badminton rackets and end up playing sponge football or rounders at the Scout Hut or on Hoggs Bridge Green.
And on Fridays during the summer months, once we have got light enough and weather permitting, we play "community" football on the main village Days Green with the children from the primary school from 3.30pm until about 6.30pm, when the younger children have left and the group is mainly older ones. Though some young ones insist on staying! That means we need more vigilance and good volunteers.
Despite the need to get round the entire Headcorn Ward and either knock on doors and post leaflets for the Election I also had 3 hospital appointments at Kings College Hospital in London during May and that usually takes some time!
But I managed to get a few volunteers to help in Ulcombe, Grafty Green and Hawkenbury and some parts of the Headcorn village area whilst I'd work on all the "targeted voters". That still amounted to a lot for one person-with a very bad leg! Headcorn is a 26 sq mile Ward and there are many out-of-the-way places.
As the 22nd loomed I was getting desperately tired-and pained-but win or lose I did have some plans after that Election, all purely pleasure, knowing how much energy and stress it may cause.
The Election campaign brought up many issues that were mainly related to the Local Plan or issues around it. I have to say there were a lot of people who felt it was an agreed "done deal" and that plans were cast in stone, as per the Consultation evening that took place in the Village hall some weeks previously. I knew I had my work cut out as at this stage as it is a CONSULTATION that has some way to go before it is certain, and I personally have objections and concerns to the most part of it, where it affects the Headcorn Ward. I intend to play my part, if elected, to make my concerns well known.
