Catch up with all the latest news across your county with Mahima Abedin.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV.
00:27I'm Mahima Abedin and here are your top stories on Tuesday the 17th of September.
00:34Find funding fast. Wildlife charity in Tunbridge Wells to close unless cash flies in soon.
00:39If there's nowhere else local to bring these animals, you know, they're not going to be
00:46saved.
00:47The doctor will see you now. Strike set to end thanks to junior doctor's deal with the
00:53government.
00:55Being a customer of the National Health, I think they do a great job.
00:58And marvellous moon. Find out what rare sight will be over Kent's skies later.
01:14First tonight, a wildlife centre in Tunbridge Wells will close unless it finds new funding
01:18fast. The Folly Wildlife Rescue Charity rehabilitates and rewilds all types of creatures but is
01:24set to shut its doors soon unless it generates the cash it needs to keep going.
01:30The centre's closure will put at risk hundreds of animals in its care. Our reporter Finn
01:34McDiarmid went down there today to find out why the situation is so precarious.
01:40Since 1994, Folly Wildlife Rescue Centre in Tunbridge Wells has taken in animals from
01:45mice to deer, giving them the care they need before releasing them into the wild again.
01:50They save more than 3,000 animals a year, but they're struggling to raise enough money
01:54to continue their work, with running the centre costing between £20,000 to £30,000 a month.
02:00Despite having around 150 volunteers, the centre is struggling to pay the full-time
02:05staff they do have, as the charity are only funded by public donations and any fundraising
02:10they do themselves. But it's not enough for the rising costs.
02:14It's £30,000 a month to run the wildlife rescue. A lot of that is obviously you've
02:22got food, we have medication and our veterinary team's services, and obviously the utilities,
02:31so heating, lights, running the washing machines. I think the main cost for us has been staffing
02:39and that's the biggest increase that we've seen with minimum wage going up.
02:44They don't receive any funding from the government or lottery grants, and without any new cash
02:48flow coming in, the wildlife hospital will be forced to reduce their hours in September
02:53and then stop their operations entirely by 2025.
02:56For the animals, catastrophic, because there's nowhere else local to take this wildlife,
03:03the birds, the hedgehogs, we have deer in here, swans, geese, ducks, you know, snakes,
03:10you name it, it comes through the doors. And if there's nowhere else local to bring these
03:14animals, you know, they're not going to be saved.
03:20If worst came to worst, Folly Animal Rescue would stop admitting their patients around
03:24a month in advance, rehabilitating the ones they already have and making sure that any
03:28with long-term needs could be transferred to new homes with other charities. In the
03:32present, the volunteers ensure the animals are kept in clean conditions and have enough
03:36food and water to recuperate. So to get a better sense of what they have to do, I decided
03:41to pitch in.
03:42Well, this is a collared dove. She had a calcium deficiency from mum and dad and she's already
03:47been treated for her canker and now we're moving her so that we can clean her cage.
03:53After transferring the dove, I cleaned out the incubator, got their food and water ready,
03:58gave their incubator some fresh newspaper and a new woolen perch. With the hospital's
04:02future unknown, it leaves the lives of the hundreds of animals in their care and the
04:06ones they could help in the future uncertain.
04:09Finn McDermid for CAME TV in Tunbridge Wells.
04:13The junior doctors' strikes here in Kent and across England are overdue to a new deal with
04:18the government. Members of the British Medical Association have agreed to an inflation-busting
04:2322% increase. It ends a dispute that's been going on for a year and a half which saw the
04:29doctors' strike 11 times. But the BMA's warned this must just be the start of more
04:35inflation rises or the strikes will return. But what do you think? Do you think the doctors
04:40deserve the increase? Or should the cash have been spent on other schemes such as the scrapped
04:45winter fuel allowance for pensioners? Well, we asked shoppers in Strood.
04:49I don't know because if they've been lagging behind, they obviously needed a rise and I
04:56don't know much about it otherwise than that.
04:58I think that's fair enough because having worked in hospitals myself for many years,
05:04as a child and family social worker for Chatham, Ledway, also Kent, I think that doctors
05:16have a very difficult job. They deserve every penny.
05:20Yeah, I think so. It shouldn't have gone on that long.
05:25Yeah, obviously they do. The job they do.
05:28Yeah, and they're the future consultants and they should be looked after.
05:36And it seems a lot, but they do deserve it. Being a customer of the National Health,
05:40I think they do a great job.
05:41Well, I think it's brilliant because we do need the doctors to do what they're used to.
05:49Yeah, I think that's brilliant that they've done it.
05:52Well, for more on the story, I was joined by Oliver Leader de Sacks earlier today.
05:57So, Oliver, as we saw there, it seems that there's quite a few people supporting the
06:02pay rise for junior doctors.
06:03Yeah, when I was in Strood today, I didn't even really hear that many people say they
06:07were against it. There was one person, in fact, who told me that they thought it was
06:11a little too steep, that 22% rise.
06:15But it does mean that 18 months of strikes are now over.
06:19Comprised of 11 different strikes, it impacted everywhere across Kent, from Medway to Canterbury
06:26by way of Maidstone.
06:28So it will probably welcome news to quite a few people across the county.
06:33Obviously, doctors not necessarily as happy as they could be with it.
06:36They wanted 35% backdating pay for the last 15 years.
06:42They're only getting a 22% rise, which means that their salary will go up from around just
06:48over £29,000 to £36,600.
06:53Obviously, they make a bit of extra money here and there on additional work, but that
06:57will be a sizeable increase.
06:59But it's not exactly what they wanted.
07:02There were 46,000 members of the British Medical Association who took part in the online poll
07:08and 66 voted in favour of the increase.
07:13Now, it has had a significant impact on the economy and on the NHS, these strikes.
07:19It cost taxpayers around £1.7 billion between 2023 and 2024.
07:27So many taxpayers might be happy that these strikes are now coming to an end.
07:32But Oli, what does that mean for Kent?
07:34Will we be seeing any more junior doctor strikes then or has it all ended?
07:38Well, there won't be any more strikes for the foreseeable future.
07:41And obviously, it follows a lot of other deals the Labour government have made with unions,
07:46such as the Aslef train drivers.
07:48So we won't see any more strikes in the foreseeable future.
07:51But obviously, we do know the Labour government are proposing some major significant NHS reforms,
07:58including shifting money away from hospitals to GP surgeries.
08:02So whether doctors will stay happy going forward is something we'll have to see here in the county.
08:09A man from Herne Bay has been ordered to attend rehab sessions
08:12after a road rage incident took a violent twist.
08:17Selhurst Blades, who's 58, was driving his Mercedes in the town
08:21when he got into a row with pedestrians who thought he almost hit them.
08:25He started throwing punches before arming himself with a large hammer.
08:29Luckily, no one was injured.
08:31Blades was ordered to attend 20 rehab sessions, a three-month curfew and was given a fine.
08:37An entrepreneur from Sturry says he's at war with Canterbury City Council
08:41over a row about the use of his land for business.
08:44Stephen Cook previously used his premises near Calcutt for pig farming,
08:49but says he had to stop animal rearing because of Covid and the war in Ukraine.
08:53He now uses it to store and service heavy machinery,
08:56something the council says he shouldn't be doing
08:58as the land is supposed to be for agricultural use only.
09:02Mr Cook says he will continue with his business despite the council's objections.
09:07I'm just going to carry on and just do what I want to do, carry on the business.
09:11How I feel about it, if they've got an issue with it, they'll come and see me.
09:15And if they come and see me, they'll have to make an appointment to come and see me.
09:19They do sometimes just walk on site, but we don't allow that here.
09:23So they can come and see me. I'm going to carry on running my business.
09:26A council set to give the green light for construction
09:30of what will be Herne Bay's sixth gym this evening.
09:33David Lloyd has submitted plans for the new centre,
09:36with memberships costing more than £1,000 a year.
09:39But with similar businesses in the area, will it survive and are other gyms worried?
09:43Local Democracy reporter Gabriel Morris has been down to the coastal area to find out.
09:49These new images giving a taste of what's to come.
09:52These new images giving a taste of what a new luxury gym in Herne Bay could look like.
09:59David Lloyd says there will be an outdoor pool with sun lounges,
10:02multi-use courts, a spa and of course, a gym.
10:06Canterbury City Council is expected to give the green light tonight.
10:10If so, it'll be the town's sixth gym.
10:13Will that saturate the town?
10:14Sam took over Sweatstop earlier this year.
10:17He says he's not fearful for competition.
10:20As a gym, we are a very different concept to David Lloyd, so I'm not overly worried.
10:26I think we're more of a community gym.
10:29We know all of our members by name and I think you can't really replace that.
10:35But it's a completely different concept.
10:37We're sort of a 24-hour local community gym
10:40and sort of the least intimidating space around to go into.
10:44The cost of memberships in a new David Lloyd gym is unknown,
10:47but at a similar site in Dartford, pricing starts at £140 a month.
10:52Muscle Hunt is one of the other gyms in Herne Bay.
10:55They cost some £100 less a month.
10:59You put your David Lloyd, which is like your upper class luxury, you pay the premium.
11:06Whether people in this day and age have got the money to afford that, I don't know.
11:11But everyone's watching the pounds at the minute, so I'd be very wary with that one.
11:18The good thing with David Lloyd is they've got the financial backing of
11:20all the other gyms within the UK.
11:22So if one does fall short for a year or two, they've got the money there to bounce it back up.
11:28If David Lloyd gets the go-ahead, they say the new centre could create up to 100 jobs.
11:34Gavin Morris in Herne Bay.
11:37Now it's time for a quick break, but when we come back, we find out more about a man
11:41from Raynham who's been sentenced to nine years in prison for attempting to groom children.
11:46We'll also hear about a supermoon.
11:48Make sure you come back to hear more after the break.
11:50We'll see you soon.
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15:13Hello and welcome back to Kentonite live on KMTV.
15:17Now, a man from Medway has been sent to prison for attempting to groom children as young as 12.
15:24David Smith from Raynham used platforms such as Snapchat and WhatsApp to contact victims.
15:29The 68-year-old will spend nine years behind bars for several offences,
15:33including causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
15:38He targeted multiple young people, giving one child money, including a payment of £500.
15:44Earlier, I spoke to Jacqueline Morris from Family Matters
15:47to talk to me about this case, as well as a recent national campaign.
15:51First of all, Jacqueline, how important is it that people like David Smith are caught and prosecuted?
15:57I think it's really important.
15:59We need to protect our children.
16:03We need to protect everybody from people like this.
16:08It's important that we make it safe out there, especially with these platforms.
16:14I think they've got their own duty to monitor what's going on.
16:19But it's too easy for people like David Smith to go onto these platforms
16:25and make connection with people and groom them and take advantage of them.
16:32And how crucial would you say it is for us as a community to stay vigilant in knowing that
16:38people like David Smith are walking around in our streets,
16:41and there are these types of characters around?
16:43We all have a responsibility to be aware and, as you say, be vigilant of
16:50of what's going on in the world around us and be aware of what our children are connecting with.
16:59And yes, staying safe and just having that awareness.
17:03And we just heard there earlier that one of the children that he groomed
17:07was actually as young as 12 years old.
17:10And a recent statistic found by the NSPCC found that a third of 13 to 18-year-old girls
17:16report experiencing sexual abuse in their relationships.
17:20So my question to you, I guess, is what support is available to young people
17:24or young girls who are having to go through something like that at such a young age?
17:28Yeah, it's quite scary sometimes, the statistics.
17:32You know, we've had 588 13 to 18-year-olds referred to family matters in the last year.
17:41From August 2023 to July 2024.
17:46And it's quite scary when you think of that.
17:48And it's really important that we are there to support these young people.
17:53And I think an awareness and support within schools to educate our young people.
18:03You mentioned there about awareness and support.
18:05Now, of course, Sexual Health Awareness Week just passed.
18:08Can you tell us a little bit about that awareness week?
18:10I mean, it's meant to be a national event that brings these important issues to light.
18:16Do you think that there was enough done during that week to create awareness?
18:21I don't think we ever will do enough.
18:24The more we do, the better it is.
18:26And the more we will become aware of these things that go on around us.
18:32And for someone who is experiencing that and who might not have seen
18:35all the things around Sexual Health Awareness Week,
18:39where can they find information about how to stay safe,
18:41about how to receive help and the support if they do need it?
18:45So they can go to our website where there are support lines that they can use and get support.
18:54Go to your GP if you need that support.
18:57Go to your GP, ask them and they can refer you on.
19:02An organisation that represents Kent's three universities is calling for tuition fees to go up.
19:08Universities UK says its institutions need more government funding too to stay sustainable.
19:14At the moment, a student from England who goes to uni pays £9,250 a year.
19:2195% of students take out loans to cover the fees and
19:25end their time at university in thousands of pounds of debt.
19:29I thought I'd have a chat with one of my friends, Hayley,
19:32who's still studying at the Uni of Kent and I recently graduated this summer.
19:36She's doing business management here in Medway,
19:39but is just unpacking at her flat as she gets ready for the new term.
19:42So she joins us virtually.
19:44Hi, Hayley.
19:46I think this is a bit strange for both of us.
19:48We're not usually used to having serious conversations like this.
19:52But thank you for sparing us a few moments while you unpack in your flat.
19:56So we used to live together, so we used to have loads of conversations.
19:59And sometimes it used to be about finances and money.
20:02So what do you make of the unis that are calling for fees to go up?
20:10I just think it's very tone deaf in the society that we're living in right now,
20:14where people are having to choose between different bills to pay just to make ends meet.
20:20They have to choose between either buying groceries or
20:24cutting down on groceries just to pay for heating, etc.
20:27And it's the same for us as students.
20:29Rent is going up every year that we've lived in our student accommodation.
20:33The rent has gone up.
20:35And for two of the years I've been at uni, I've had to get a job on the side
20:40just to pay for either the difference in rent
20:43or just to have some sort of lifestyle outside of uni as well.
20:47So yeah, I really, really don't like that.
20:50So would you have, if this had happened before we went to uni, before we were applying,
20:54would you have even considered going to uni?
20:56Because you mentioned there that everything was going up.
20:58So would you have?
20:59Yeah, I would have considered, but it would have been like a tougher decision to make
21:06because you have to think about
21:07how much you're going to end up having to pay back after your degree's over.
21:13And even though it is like a small, small percentage taken out of your wages,
21:18it is a lot of money.
21:21Especially me, I did a four-year course
21:23because I wanted to have an experience to travel as well.
21:26And if my tuition went up any higher than it already is,
21:30it's like literally tens of thousands of pounds that I'd have to owe.
21:35And Hayley, really quickly,
21:36what would you say to someone who's thinking about going to uni,
21:39but with the possibility of tuition fees going up, is it worth it?
21:43I would say uni's always worth it for,
21:47like, if you want to have that independent experience and to make new friends.
21:50Like we met through living in the same accommodation at uni,
21:53we don't do the same course.
21:55So I'm glad that, you know,
21:56you get to experience certain positive aspects of uni like that,
22:00meeting new people, getting a sense of independence.
22:03But at the same time, it is a lot to think
22:06that people have different situations, come from different backgrounds.
22:09So I would definitely say just sit and think about it.
22:12But I would always recommend it based on my experience.
22:16Thanks so much, Hayley. Thank you.
22:19Now, don't forget, you can keep up to date
22:21with all your latest stories across Kent
22:23by logging onto our website, kmtv.co.uk.
22:26There, you'll find all our reports, including this one
22:29about the Kent influencers aspiring to reach a billion followers
22:32like global superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
22:36Alessia Russo, 860,000 followers.
22:40Alessia Russo, 863,000.
22:43Orlando Bloom, 7.1 million.
22:47These are just two of Kent's celebrities
22:49who haven't found it hard to gain a following online
22:52thanks to their stardom.
22:54Cristiano Ronaldo has long been hailed
22:56as one of the most successful footballers,
22:58but now can be labelled as one of the most successful influencers too
23:02after he reached a billion followers across all his social media pages.
23:06That's more than 500 times the population of Kent.
23:10Even after scoring 900 goals and taking home 33 trophies,
23:14Cristiano Ronaldo is clearly still ready to make some career records
23:18even in the online space.
23:20It's hard to imagine what a billion followers really looks like,
23:23but perhaps not so surprising
23:25as with the continued rise of platforms like TikTok
23:28and even new ones like Threads,
23:30the role of the social media influencer is becoming ever more common
23:33and there's even a fair few that have been popping up here in Kent.
23:40Wow! Wow!
23:44You might not have heard of Dover's Aaron Kraskal,
23:46but he's been making people laugh online for more than a decade
23:49with a combined follower tally of three million.
23:52Whilst Aaron calls himself an idiot with a camera,
23:55other online celebrities like Tasha Newcombe from Chatham
23:58take the lifestyle approach,
24:00showing off their lavish routines
24:02and promoting brand products for a profit
24:04to her almost 60,000 Instagram fans.
24:08So it's clear to see why the influencer life might be appealing
24:12and the data proves it with 17% of young people
24:15choosing it as their dream career.
24:18Hey guys, my name is Joy.
24:19I'm an entertainment social video journalist.
24:21I think kids and young people are inspired by what they see.
24:25Like when I was younger, I would look at TV presenters
24:27and think, oh my God, I want to be like that.
24:29And influencers are now part of the people
24:32who young people are exposed to.
24:34So I think it looks nice, I guess, to be an influencer.
24:37Granted, a lot of it can be fake.
24:39You know, our DG was revealed this week
24:42that these LA influencers who have these nice apartments,
24:45they are renting a space.
24:46Like that's not their house.
24:47Like they've rented that space.
24:49I think for social media, like from what we see,
24:51it does make it look super attractive.
24:53And it's not just individuals becoming more popular online.
24:56Social media itself has this week overtaken television
24:59for the first time as the number one place
25:02to keep up to date with news here in the UK.
25:04So next time you're online,
25:06why not give us a follow for all the latest.
25:09Bartholomew Hall for KMTV.
25:12And now it's time for the weather.
25:20Tonight, it's clear skies and cool temperatures
25:22across the county.
25:23Highs of 16 and lows of 15.
25:26Tomorrow morning, it's cloudy skies
25:28and warmer weather of 19 degrees in Margate and in Canterbury.
25:32And by the afternoon, sunshine all around.
25:35Temperatures continue to rise to 21 degrees
25:37in the Dartford and Chatham areas.
25:40And for the rest of the week in Kent,
25:41sun and clouds for the upcoming days
25:43with temperatures reaching up to 22 on Saturday.
25:55And finally, before you go,
25:57I have to tell you about a rare partial solar eclipse
26:00that's going to be visible over Kent later.
26:03We're showing you some images of a previous harvest moon.
26:06This will rise tonight at 7.15 and is what's called a supermoon.
26:10You'll have to be prepared to stay up late
26:12if you want to see the eclipse though.
26:14And it starts at 1.40am
26:16and will be over at around 4 in the morning.
26:18If you do stay up, send us your photos through our socials
26:21and there won't be another eclipse until 2026.
26:27You've been watching Kent Tonight live on KMTV.
26:30There's more news made just for Kent throughout the evening.
26:33And don't forget, you can always keep up to date
26:35with the latest news across your county
26:37by logging onto our website, kmtv.co.uk
26:40and make sure to give us a follow on your social timelines.
26:43That's on Facebook and on X.
26:45Well, that's it from me.
26:46We'll see you soon.
26:46Have a good evening.
27:00you