Catch up with all the latest news from across the county with Bartholomew Hall.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV, I'm Bartholomew Hall.
00:29Here are your top stories on Monday the 30th of December.
00:33AI against abuse, we speak to the Kent domestic violence survivor using technology to protect women and girls.
00:41And one of them said to me, it's like, I felt like I was in an invisible prison, but now I can see my escape.
00:47A muddy mess, habitat destroyed after vandals take quad bike into Ashford Nature Reserve.
00:53A danger to our livestock as well, who are free roaming on sites, our cows and ponies could easily get spooked.
00:59And Kent's New Year's resolutions, we speak to shoppers in Rochester about which promises they're sticking to or not in 2025.
01:08I said last year to run a black wall.
01:11I had a bit of a goal in mind just to become a bit more fitter.
01:24Good evening, a domestic abuse survivor from Kent told KMTV that more needs to be done to provide effective support to women and girls.
01:33Katie Longhurst, who made nearly 170 reports of abuse to four different police forces, says more communication is vital as she works towards the widespread rollout of a new app that she says could turn everyday objects into silent panic alarms.
01:47This is Katie's story.
01:49So he would start with physically just mental abuse.
01:54If that didn't work, you would escalate into harassment.
01:56If that didn't work, it was gaslighting.
01:57If that didn't work, it was violence.
01:59When Katie Longhurst met her perpetrator in Chatham more than a decade ago, she didn't know that she would go on to make 169 reports of domestic abuse against her ex-partner.
02:12But despite making so many reports, Katie doesn't believe she was taken seriously until one detective reexamined her case.
02:23So for me, I think that I was seen as a nuisance because I was contacting the police every single day and I don't think they have the right training around domestic abuse.
02:32And coercive control is very, very difficult to prove as I think they need re-educating.
02:38The only reason that Ollie understood my case is because he went through every single crime report that was ever reported and he mapped out the pattern of my ex's behaviour.
02:49So he took time to understand rather than just jump into conclusions and see me as a time waster.
02:55Kent Police say they are committed to ensuring victims of domestic abuse receive the highest possible level of service and that they have made significant improvements in their approach to tackling domestic violence since Katie made her last report to them back in 2017.
03:13Now Katie has decided to take action into her own hands with a new app designed to protect women from domestic violence.
03:22Obviously with the support that I wasn't given and what I needed, I then started exploring how technology could help other people in my situation.
03:29So for me, I had Spira on my phone, my house was bugged, the panic alarm just wasn't fit for purpose and if you speak to other domestic abuse victims, they will refuse to have a panic alarm installed because it's a big red button.
03:43And so I started exploring technology and how we could help other women in my situation, which is why I built AskJone.
03:50Using smart meters, the app turns regular household appliances into silent panic alarms that can alert emergency contacts and the authorities.
04:01It works, it's basically you can raise an alarm without making a sound. That is the core thing for me. So it's already live with 18 women and one of them said to me, it's like I felt like I was in an invisible prison but now I can see my escape.
04:17With plans to visit Parliament in the new year, Katie hopes more local authorities will roll out AskJone.
04:25The decorations may be up, but the work is far from over.
04:30Oliver, Leader of the SACs for KMTV.
04:33And if you've been impacted by any of the issues raised in that report, you can contact the free 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 200 0247.
04:43And if you want to learn more about Katie's story, well, you can stick around after the break for our full Kent Tonight special premiering tonight, Breaking Down the Alarming Rise of Domestic Abuse Reports, Kent Police since 2014.
04:55And the documentary's producer, Oliver, Leader of the SACs joins me on the sofa now.
04:59Oli, thanks for being here. What should we expect from this documentary tonight?
05:02Well, you heard from Katie that it's quite moving and shocking what many of these women and girls across Kent are going through.
05:10And Katie is just one of several people we spoke to for this documentary.
05:15We spoke to charities as well who do vital work on the issue of domestic abuse.
05:21You mentioned those numbers.
05:23Well, our findings are exclusive.
05:25We obtained them under the Freedom of Information Act and they show there's been around 330,000 reports of domestic abuse between 2014 and 2023.
05:35For the documentary to find out why these numbers have increased since 2014 and why they're slowly starting to decline in recent years.
05:46Is it a rising awareness? Is it because violence is actually on the rise?
05:51It is quite a complicated issue, as you'll find out after the break if you stick around.
05:55Yeah, very important issue, Oli. Thank you very much for those details.
05:59Next night, the Kent Wildlife Trust says a quad bike has wreaked havoc on one of its nature reserves by the user removing a gate from its hinges and destroying vital habitat.
06:09Well, Hothfield Nature Reserve near Ashford is classified as a site of specific scientific interest, meaning it is protected for the purposes of conservation.
06:18But as Will Glasson from the Trust tells KMTV, that has now been made even harder with the damage that's been caused.
06:24They're a risk to other users on the site, to themselves. They have no helmets, no kind of protective equipment.
06:29They're a danger to our livestock as well, who are free roaming on sites. Our cows and ponies could easily get spooked.
06:35It's a SSSI, a site of special scientific interest due to the rare flora, the rare plants, as well as the rare species of invertebrates.
06:45So some of the plants, such as our heather, such as some of the rare acid grass and species which you'd get, which can't move out the way of this 4x4 coming on, get completely wrecked by it.
07:00And it disturbs animals who, if this was later in the year in the nesting season, might be attempting to nest out in the heather where these bikes have been driving.
07:12Well, it's understood several incidences of criminal damage have now been reported to the police.
07:18Next, a motorcyclist has died after being involved in a crash in Maidstone on Christmas Eve.
07:22It's understood the 40-year-old man was riding a white Honda motorbike when he hit a lamppost on the A26 Tunbridge Road near to the Bull pub.
07:30The crash resulted in the road being shut for five and a half hours, with officers today confirming that the man died as a result of his injuries.
07:38They're now appealing for anyone with information to come forward.
07:41Looking at the weather now, this evening it's looking to be fairly mild, average temperatures of 8 degrees across the county with cloudy skies.
07:52New Year's Eve tomorrow gets slightly warmer, increasing to 9 degrees.
07:55Overcast skies remain with strong winds to be expected, including in the afternoon as well.
08:02Those temperatures slightly increasing as we do head towards the big midnight.
08:08The outlook for the rest of the week is varied.
08:09Yellow weather warnings on Wednesday and Thursday for more wind looking to clear up as we reach Friday.
08:21And finally, with the start of 2025 fast approaching, many across Kent will have thought about making New Year's resolutions.
08:27In fact, across the country, one in four Brits say they'll be making one.
08:30But just how well are we at keeping them?
08:32We've been down to Rochester High Street to see how shoppers there did with keeping their resolutions this year.
08:37I think we got married last year, so, well, this year.
08:42But I think one of them was to try not to let it run away from us and, you know, enjoy it and not get stressed.
08:49And I think we managed to do that quite well.
08:52I probably did. I totally forgot what they were and totally forgot if I actually achieved them.
08:57But I probably did because I do this every year.
08:59I did. I did. I said last year to ride my bike more.
09:03I did ride my bike for a while and then it got cold and I, you know, stopped that.
09:09But I want to get back into that again.
09:11I did. My last year's resolutions basically was to work harder at the gym.
09:17I had a bit of a goal in mind just to become a bit more fitter, a bit more stamina.
09:22And I got a new job this year as well, which was something that I was aiming for last year
09:27because I was unhappy where I was last year.
09:29So now I have a new job and I'm just happier in life and I'm working harder at the gym more than ever.
09:34And, yeah, I feel more better in myself, which is where I want it to be.
09:37No, I don't think I've made the resolutions for some time now
09:42precisely because of the fact that I've never seemed to hold them.
09:45It's poor willpower, I suppose.
09:48Well, Ronnie joins me now back from Rochester High Street.
09:51It sounds like there was a real mix from some of the shoppers there
09:54about whether or not they achieved their resolutions in 2024.
09:57I think that tends to be the trend most years.
10:00So what do we know from the data that you've got there about next year?
10:04So for next year, a survey was done by YouGov
10:07and it shows that 27% of Brits plan to make a 2025 New Year's resolution.
10:13Of that 27%, Gen Z seemed to be focusing the most on financially related resolutions
10:19that could be working towards a pay rise, saving for a house,
10:22maybe just saving in general.
10:24And Gen X is going to be focusing more on their health,
10:27so maybe some mental health, meditation,
10:30maybe going to the doctor a bit more often.
10:33But let's take a look at what some of the 2025 resolutions are for people in Rochester.
10:40To get more healthier and to get more fitter and ready for holiday for next year.
10:45Yes. I want to set a date for our wedding and plan most of it this year.
10:53I haven't yet, but I think I'm mainly going to be aiming towards,
10:59because I have a YouTube channel, so again, same as last year, didn't achieve it.
11:03But next year, hopefully I'll achieve what I need to subscribe always.
11:08Yeah, just one especially. Stop smoking.
11:12A big one.
11:15Not really. I think I just want to continue to do what I did last year.
11:20So just continue to go to the gym.
11:23Same, just smoke less than what I did in the past.
11:27And just try to enjoy the...
11:31The years?
11:32Yeah, and just the moment.
11:342024 for us has been quite challenging due to a lot of events that have happened.
11:41So 2025 for us, we're just moving to France.
11:44So we just want to be happier.
11:46That's our resolution.
11:49That's it from us. Good night.