Catch up on the latest news from across the county with Abby Hook.
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00:02 - Good evening and welcome to Kentonite Live on KMTV.
00:28 I'm Abbey Hook, here are your top stories
00:30 on Tuesday the 15th of August.
00:34 We can't afford it.
00:35 With hundreds unemployed in Herne Bay,
00:38 parents say they can't cope with mounting costs.
00:41 - It's such a hard work at the moment,
00:43 just trying to put food on the table,
00:45 let alone having to get school uniform.
00:48 - We feel forgotten.
00:50 Medway Businesswoman says Eula's scheme
00:52 will hit her business hard.
00:54 - With everything going up, it's just not viable.
00:57 - And making cheddar.
00:59 We meet the traditional cheese maker turning carbon neutral.
01:03 - We wanna maintain that niche kind of product,
01:05 so separate us from the factory made cheeses
01:08 that we all see in the supermarkets.
01:10 (upbeat music)
01:12 - First tonight, as unemployment in Herne Bay
01:22 has risen by hundreds in the past year,
01:25 parents can no longer afford necessities
01:27 like school uniform.
01:29 A woman who owns a free shop in the seaside town
01:31 says logos should be scrapped,
01:33 and that says that's what makes school uniform unaffordable.
01:37 Well, with more and more turning to hand-me-downs,
01:39 Sophia Akin has been to speak
01:40 to a number of struggling mothers.
01:43 - For centuries, children across the globe
01:45 have worn school uniforms,
01:47 but in Herne Bay, more and more parents
01:49 are turning to second-hand uniform.
01:52 As the cost of living soars,
01:53 they just can't find the pennies,
01:55 and this free shop sees hundreds coming in every day.
01:59 In Herne Bay, unemployment has jumped
02:01 from just five unemployed last year
02:04 to 360 unemployed as of June this year,
02:08 and it costs an average of a little more than 100 pounds
02:11 to fork out for school uniform.
02:13 But with hundreds unemployed,
02:15 they're asking how can we afford this?
02:18 - The prices are absolutely horrendous.
02:20 I think she went a while ago,
02:22 and it was like 150 pounds,
02:24 and all she bought was about three or four items.
02:26 - It's just the price on them.
02:27 It's just unbelievable, like,
02:28 especially for, like, me, single parent by myself.
02:31 - So it's such a hard work at the moment,
02:33 just trying to put food on the table,
02:35 let alone having to get school uniform.
02:37 - Everything has gone up sky-high,
02:39 and people are struggling.
02:40 I mean, they're struggling to put food on the table,
02:42 never mind school uniform.
02:44 So what are they supposed to do?
02:45 - Now, people are traveling from far and wide
02:47 outside of Herne Bay
02:48 just to get access to this free school uniform rail.
02:50 They're saying school uniform has become so expensive
02:53 that they're left with no other choice.
02:55 Now, let's take a look at these two red polo shirts.
02:57 They look pretty similar, don't they?
02:59 Except for the fact that one has a logo on, one doesn't.
03:02 Now, this is a problem that parents have raised to me.
03:04 They said having to buy their children school uniform
03:07 with branding on it just makes it so much more expensive.
03:10 They're saying we should get rid of the branding altogether.
03:13 - I also want to ask schools,
03:15 especially high schools, to ease the rules on uniform.
03:19 I understand that if they get lost or pass out,
03:21 we can know what school that kids belong to.
03:25 So if we have a logo on one piece of uniform,
03:28 the rest of the uniform will cost less.
03:31 - For one mother, her son has autism and sensory issues,
03:35 which the school uniforms only seem to trigger.
03:38 - With these tags, so what I find with him,
03:42 especially those with sensory processing,
03:44 you've got tags like this.
03:45 Now, these basically, what you're better off doing
03:47 is having it printed because this is a real irritant as well.
03:51 And then you've got even the collars, the buttons,
03:54 everything about it isn't irritant
03:56 for those with sensory processing.
03:58 - As well as Myers Shop, where all items are free of charge,
04:01 schools are advised to provide
04:03 second-hand uniforms and support.
04:05 They're also guided by the government
04:07 to limit the number of branded items in the school uniform
04:11 to make it more affordable for parents.
04:14 Sophia Akin for KMTV in Herne Bay.
04:17 - Next tonight, EULA's is going to cost my business thousands
04:23 according to a Medway businesswoman.
04:25 Two weeks today, some vehicles will have to pay
04:27 a £12.50 daily fee to enter the ultra-low emission zone.
04:31 London motorists have access to a scrappage scheme,
04:34 but as Gabriel Morris reports,
04:35 others in Kent would like to see the same.
04:38 - One of the most controversial policies of recent years.
04:43 Some thought it would never happen,
04:45 but last month, the High Court ruled EULA lawful.
04:49 This Medway businesswoman says her diesel van
04:52 she uses for work doesn't meet the emission standards.
04:57 Around 75% of her clients are within the chargeable zone.
05:02 She says EULA's is going to cost her thousands.
05:06 - Now, it's completely unfair.
05:07 Now more than ever, people are buying out of the area,
05:11 cheaper houses, and they're traveling into London,
05:15 they're traveling into the local areas,
05:16 and that's what a lot of us are doing because it's so dear.
05:19 - Some people watching this might say,
05:20 "Why don't you go and buy a new van?"
05:21 - Yeah.
05:23 If I go and buy a new van now,
05:24 it's gonna cost double the cost of a new van.
05:28 I've been looking, and if I want a newer van,
05:31 I think 2018 or '19, you're looking about 18 grand.
05:35 And at the moment, it's just not,
05:36 with everything going up, it's just not viable to get that.
05:41 - This is where the EULA zone will meet the Kent border.
05:44 Now, I've been here for 10 minutes
05:46 seeing which vans are EULA's compliant or not.
05:49 Now, it's not the most accurate study,
05:51 but I found that three out of 10 vans
05:54 going through the border would have to pay £12.50
05:57 in two weeks' time when EULA's comes into force.
06:00 Now, we don't know which authority
06:02 these vans are licensed within.
06:05 If they are London, they'll have access to a scrappage scheme
06:08 of up to £11,500.
06:12 But for businesses in Kent, they don't.
06:15 - It's very important that we support our small businesses,
06:20 and I don't think that we should be putting them
06:24 in a position where they are potentially
06:27 gonna suffer real financial strain.
06:29 It's really up to the government to provide the funding.
06:33 - The government hasn't confirmed
06:34 any nationwide scrappage schemes as of yet,
06:38 but they, alongside Kent County Council,
06:41 says it's unfair on our county's motorists.
06:44 We put this to the mayor of London.
06:46 No one was available for interview,
06:48 but we were sent this statement.
06:51 The mayor has been clear that the decision
06:53 to expand the ultra-low emission zone London-wide
06:56 was not an easy one,
06:57 but necessary to tackle toxic air pollution.
07:00 Around 4,000 Londoners die prematurely each year
07:04 due to air pollution.
07:06 ULES is the focus of many businesses at the moment.
07:10 There's no way around it.
07:11 They either have to buy a compliant van or pay the fee.
07:16 Gaben Morris for CAME TV.
07:18 - Next tonight, not enough money.
07:22 The words of Kent County Council's
07:24 former Highways and Transport Cabinet member.
07:27 Councillor David Brazier has stepped down
07:29 from his position in Roger Gough's Cabinet,
07:31 amongst two other members in a reshuffle.
07:33 What impact will this switch up have
07:35 on Kent's residents?
07:36 And how will the council battle
07:38 its mounting financial pressures?
07:40 I spoke to David Brazier earlier.
07:42 You are no longer part of the Transport and Highways
07:45 in that Cabinet position on KCC.
07:48 Was that a mutual decision?
07:50 - Yes, yes, Roger discussed it with me.
07:54 I had had well over two and a half years
08:01 in the port area,
08:03 which has been extraordinarily difficult and busy.
08:07 And frankly, I was, well,
08:12 not going to object to a wrist from it for a bit.
08:16 So I'm very happy with what's happened.
08:19 Roger, of course, has a large group, well over 60 people.
08:24 And there are a lot of ambitious and talented people there.
08:30 And it's only reasonable that, you know,
08:34 they should be able to try their hand.
08:35 - You're happy with the decision,
08:38 the mutual decision there,
08:39 but are you happy with Kent's roads and transport
08:42 in the way it's left now that you have stepped down?
08:45 - Yes and no.
08:50 I've got a list of what I think has been achieved
08:55 during my period in the Cabinet.
09:00 We are, of course, always being criticised for,
09:06 principally by the public for potholes,
09:09 but we are getting on top of that.
09:12 And I would say that not only in highways and transport,
09:16 but as a council,
09:18 our problems are entirely related to money.
09:23 And these are problems that we can only fix
09:28 to some extent ourselves.
09:31 We don't get enough money from government.
09:35 It's the same for other higher tier councils,
09:40 all of whom have struggled
09:45 to keep their roads well maintained.
09:49 We don't do badly,
09:50 but another 10 or 20 million
09:55 would make the world of difference,
09:57 but we don't get it.
09:58 - And that money, it's a huge financial pressure
10:02 that the council is under at the minute.
10:04 How bad actually is it?
10:06 Was there enough money to put into things like potholes
10:09 to fix it while you were in that position?
10:11 - There's never enough.
10:15 We would have been in a pickle
10:18 had it not been for government
10:21 recognizing that the problem we had
10:24 was actually a nationwide problem
10:26 and putting a couple of hundred million into circulation.
10:31 We got 6 million out of it,
10:34 which is enough to make a difference,
10:36 but not the amount that we needed really.
10:39 - Now we've heard from some people
10:41 that the council's in chaos,
10:44 especially with those financial pressures.
10:46 So how's it looking more generally
10:47 for the conservatives within the council?
10:49 - Well, there is going to be an election
10:53 in a couple of years' time.
10:55 And we are having to take steps
10:59 to put the finances of the council right
11:05 to provide the services to the public that they pay for.
11:10 And it's a struggle.
11:14 We have had to sacrifice
11:18 some of the discretionary services that we provide.
11:21 There isn't enough money to go about.
11:25 Now, when we come to an election, of course,
11:27 the opposition, they will simply say,
11:29 well, you know, if you vote for us, it won't be like that.
11:31 Well, of course it will,
11:33 but it does alter the way people think
11:38 when they go into the polling booth.
11:41 - Now, Roger Goff wasn't available to speak with us,
11:44 but said these changes to the cabinet
11:46 give us a renewed team that will focus on challenges
11:49 and opportunities facing the council.
11:51 It's now time for a short break.
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15:06 - Hello and welcome back to Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
15:17 Now, offences involving sexual communication with children
15:21 have risen to more than 200 in Kent,
15:23 according to the NSPCC.
15:25 It's part of national data revealing more than 70%
15:28 of these offences taking place on social media.
15:31 They also found that one in four children
15:33 being targeted are in primary school.
15:35 The Children's Safety Charity hopes
15:37 the much anticipated online safety bill
15:40 will provide more protection for these young people,
15:42 but also says things need to change now.
15:46 - The online safety bill,
15:47 which has been going through parliament
15:49 is coming back next month.
15:51 And that's an opportunity to deliver real protections,
15:54 really strong protections for children
15:57 and fundamentally change the playing field
16:01 so that companies have to abide by a duty of care
16:05 for their users.
16:07 And think of children's safety,
16:09 think of the risks of child sexual abuse
16:11 when designing and rolling out new products.
16:14 So yes, these figures can go down,
16:18 but we don't need to wait until regulation
16:21 comes into force.
16:23 There is a lot more companies can be doing.
16:28 - A GoFundMe page has been set up
16:31 for a man who died in a crash in Romney Marsh.
16:34 Charlie Dwyer from Appledore
16:35 was soon to become a dad for the first time.
16:37 He's left behind his partner Paige,
16:39 who is 23 weeks pregnant.
16:41 Her family are hoping to raise money to support her
16:43 and have already raised nearly £3,000.
16:46 While tributes have been pouring in for Mr. Dwyer,
16:48 the police continue to appeal
16:50 for information about the crash.
16:53 A person has been seriously injured
16:54 after being electrocuted on a train line in Deal.
16:57 Emergency services were called to an incident
16:59 at the station late on Sunday night.
17:01 Trains between Ramsgate and Dover Priory
17:03 were stopped at around 11pm
17:05 after officers from British Transport Police
17:07 were called to report of a casualty on the tracks.
17:10 The victim was taken to hospital
17:11 for what are described as life-changing industries.
17:14 The police said they are in a stable condition
17:16 and the incident isn't being treated as suspicious.
17:20 Well, now it's time for us to take a quick look
17:22 at some of Kent's sports news.
17:24 (upbeat music)
17:28 (dramatic music)
17:31 First in the sport, Kent cricketer Tammy Beaumont
17:36 made history yesterday as she hit the first ever century
17:38 in the 100 women's competition.
17:41 Born in Dover and playing for Kent since 2007,
17:43 Beaumont hit a spectacular 118,
17:46 hitting 24s and two sixes in her 61 balls.
17:50 Her school is the best in either the men's or women's 100
17:52 and helped Welsh Fire set a total of 181,
17:55 which was pivotal in them defeating Trent Rockets by 41 runs.
17:59 After the game, Beaumont said,
18:01 I don't know what happened to be honest,
18:03 I just had an absolute day out.
18:05 Great news for her.
18:06 Gillingham will be looking to continue
18:08 their winning start to the league season
18:10 as they face Sutton United tonight.
18:12 Kicking off at 7.45pm, Neil Harris's side
18:15 travel to the VBS Community Stadium
18:17 with wins against Stockport and Accrington Stanley.
18:20 It's been the perfect start,
18:22 but tonight the Gills will face a stern test
18:24 in promotion rival Sutton,
18:25 with a win potentially being crucial to both teams' seasons.
18:29 Ahead of the fixture, Neil Harris said,
18:30 we have to make sure we not only stand up
18:32 to Sutton's physicality,
18:34 because they're a big physical side,
18:36 but they can play as well.
18:38 Next tonight, Kent Gymnastics Group.
18:43 The DC Diamonds have represented Britain
18:45 at the World Gymnastrada.
18:47 The event this year, hosted in Amsterdam,
18:49 is the world's largest celebration of the sport.
18:51 They were joined by 20,000 participants
18:54 from 50 other nations
18:55 to create a spectacular festival of gymnastics.
18:59 Well, I'm pleased to say joining me in the studio now
19:01 is head coach Debbie Cooper,
19:03 Josie Cooper and Phoebe Blair from the team as well.
19:06 Thank you all for coming in.
19:07 Thank you all for coming in.
19:10 Incredible competition you were part of.
19:13 I'll come to you both first.
19:14 What was it like competing
19:16 on the sort of world level for Britain?
19:18 We were very proud to represent our club
19:21 and our country,
19:22 and it was an amazing event to be part of.
19:25 Josie, what was it like for you?
19:27 It was very scary.
19:29 I was scared and nervous at the same time,
19:30 but also it was really exciting
19:32 because you got to see everyone else perform
19:33 and it was like, wow.
19:34 I suppose it spurs you on as well,
19:36 seeing everybody in that place.
19:39 Debbie, have you done many competitions like this before?
19:41 Not on this scale.
19:43 This is a huge, huge event.
19:46 It's a once in a four years kind of thing.
19:49 So the next one isn't until 2027.
19:52 So we thought now's the time.
19:54 Time was right.
19:54 So we thought we'd have a go.
19:56 And oh my God, what an experience.
19:59 It's absolutely amazing.
20:00 Amazing.
20:00 And a club from Kent on the world stage.
20:02 How did you get there?
20:03 How did you go about competing in something like this?
20:06 We like doing a lot of display gymnastics.
20:09 We're doing the British Gymnastics Gym Fusion events.
20:12 So when we came across this on the British Gymnastics site,
20:15 we looked at it,
20:17 and it seemed like a brilliant opportunity.
20:20 So we just went for it, didn't we?
20:21 We just thought, let's give it a go.
20:23 We can see some of your performance there on the screen.
20:27 What was the support like from your friends back home,
20:29 your family, everybody sort of spurring you on?
20:32 Yeah, we had some parents come out to us
20:34 and other Great Britain clubs were there as well,
20:38 supporting each other.
20:38 We all supported each other and cheered each other on.
20:41 Amazing.
20:42 And a really key part of what you did,
20:43 which I found fascinating,
20:45 was that you had sign language in your routine.
20:47 We should shortly be seeing some of that on the screen as well.
20:49 Why was that so important to sort of incorporate that?
20:53 That was more me.
20:55 We, as teenagers,
20:58 they are prevalent to bullying, social media,
21:01 and our whole routine was about girl power
21:04 and bringing everyone together.
21:05 And the song that we used sign language for,
21:08 I felt that we needed to stand still and be fully inclusive.
21:13 And it was just very poignant.
21:16 You know, everyone in the crowd was just like,
21:18 you're just watching it.
21:19 But you don't expect it, do you?
21:21 No, we only saw one other team do that for a fully inclusive event.
21:25 It was just, it was staggering, the support we got.
21:27 And everyone came up to us afterwards and said that they really enjoyed that.
21:31 Amazing, really, really successful.
21:33 Was it tougher than you thought, girls?
21:35 Was it tougher competition, more daunting?
21:37 What did you take away?
21:41 It was a fun experience and we all support each other
21:45 and we didn't really know what was happening,
21:48 but as soon as we got there, it was fun.
21:51 Sort of gelled and just went back to what you know best, I suppose.
21:56 And just lastly, we don't have long left, I'm afraid,
21:59 but what was one of the standout moments for you, Debbie,
22:01 watching the girls do this?
22:03 I think it was on the first day arriving
22:05 and going to the parade, ready to walk to the stadium.
22:08 And everyone was there from every country.
22:11 And it was just, oh my God, it's just the sense,
22:15 you can imagine what the Olympics must be like in that sense.
22:19 Everyone, the sense of camaraderie, everything,
22:21 everyone was, you know, mucking in together
22:24 and it was just so friendly, high-fiving.
22:25 Amazing. Well, hopefully the next time I'm talking to you,
22:28 it is at the Olympics or in 2027 after you've gone again.
22:32 Thank you so much for coming in.
22:34 It was great to talk to you and learn more about this.
22:36 I bet you have a lot of supporters watching tonight as well,
22:39 continuing to cheer you on.
22:40 Well, well done and congratulations.
22:42 Thank you for having us.
22:44 Well, now it's time for us to take a very quick look at the weather forecast.
22:49 Looking fairly mild tonight, lows of 14,
22:57 highs of 16 near Dartford, clear skies.
23:00 Tomorrow morning, much of the same.
23:01 The sun's back out, highs of 21, lows of 19.
23:06 And the afternoon warming up, a bit of cloud coming in in the west,
23:10 highs of 25 in Dartford.
23:12 And into your weekend looks like this.
23:15 Sunshine throughout, a mix of some sun and cloud on Thursday and Saturday,
23:18 but warm at 24.
23:21 And finally, from cattle to cloth, completely carbon neutral.
23:32 One Sevenoaks dairy farmer is churning his cheese environmentally friendly.
23:36 Winterdale cheese makers have been in operation since 2006,
23:40 producing a raw milk cheddar from their own dairy farm.
23:43 Well, I paid Robin and Carla Betts a visit and had a go at cheese making for myself.
23:49 From cattle to curd, this family run dairy farm in Sevenoaks has claimed its carbon neutral crown.
23:57 The Winterdale shore cheese is completely carbon neutrally produced.
24:00 Any energy it took to make was generated through solar panels or a wind turbine.
24:05 But let's see how it tastes.
24:08 Good cheese.
24:13 Cheese makers Robin and Carla Betts have been running Winterdale since 2006
24:19 and with such an artisan product, they've managed to keep profit margins high and energy use low.
24:26 We've installed quite a number of solar panels now, both the farm and here.
24:30 So, and obviously what we do here at the cheese business is completely carbon neutral in terms of our energy.
24:36 So as soon as the milk comes into the dairy here, the whole process is completely carbon neutral.
24:42 The farm is a little bit more difficult because it does rely on so much energy.
24:45 We all know that livestock isn't the best thing for our environment, but it's that balance.
24:51 Once collected, milk is taken over the road, still warm, to be made into cheese.
24:57 Robin had a batch stirred, set and pressed ready.
25:01 Press that now for two days.
25:02 So we turn those cheeses out, hot dip them, change the cloth
25:07 and then put them in the bigger press at the back of the dairy there for another two days.
25:11 Then it was time for me to try and cloth wrap the chunks of cheese.
25:16 No plastic involved, which is nice. It's biodegradable, better for the environment.
25:20 Cloth wrap it, then we've got this lovely USP where we layer it into our cave
25:24 that's running underneath the cheese barn for a whopping 10 months before we can eat it.
25:28 And this process is key to their business.
25:32 We want to maintain that niche kind of product,
25:34 so separate us from the factory-made cheeses that we all see in the supermarkets.
25:38 So this relies heavily on being very traditional in the way it's made.
25:43 So behind me you can see the very traditional cheese presses.
25:48 But being carbon neutral isn't as old a practice as their processes.
25:52 Robin says the new take on farming could help producers during an energy crisis.
25:57 Dairy farmers rely heavily on energy for obviously milking the cows and obviously feeding the cows.
26:03 The other big factor for farming in general is fertiliser costs.
26:07 They're still extortionately high.
26:09 So farming in general has been hit really hard by this energy crisis.
26:13 So yeah, financially they're struggling.
26:17 Despite industry pressures, these cheesemakers keep churning on
26:22 as just a small slice of this billion pound industry.
26:26 Abbey Hook for KMTV.
26:29 Well, there'll be a lot more of that right after the break,
26:31 where Sophia will be in my seat bringing you Made in Kent,
26:35 where Robin Betts will be here in the studio,
26:37 and Sophia will be trying some of that cheese for herself as well.
26:39 But you've been watching Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
26:42 There's more news made just for Kent throughout the evening,
26:45 but that's all from the Kent Tonight team.
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