Catch up with all the latest news from across the county with Abby Hook.
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00:00Hello, good evening and welcome to Kentonite live on KMTV.
00:28I'm Abbey Hook, here are your top stories on Monday the 9th of December.
00:32A tax tsunami. Kent's social care charities say latest budget could be a washout for the
00:39sector.
00:40We need urgent action to ensure social care can survive these rising costs.
00:47County lines crack down. Kent police arrest 34 and get thousands of drugs off the streets.
00:54This particular shoe located a quantity of cash sterling, which I'll leave there for
01:00a second, plus a large chain of some sort.
01:05And meet the Flying Falcons. Medway handball team call for more people to get involved
01:10in the sport.
01:11And leaving from there I can go and represent my home country.
01:24First tonight, charities across Kent are warning of a triple whammy in costs following the
01:31government's recent budget.
01:33The lowering of the national insurance threshold and rises in the percentage paid alongside
01:38minimum wage increases are being blamed.
01:41The county council is calling for social care organisations to be exempt, like the public
01:46sector is.
01:47Local democracy reporter Gabriel Morris has spent the day with the Kent Autistic Trust
01:51to see how they might be impacted.
01:56Enter Carton's home in Canterbury. He's an adult living with autism. His interests are
02:02obvious.
02:03I like the Dalek episodes. You see them more now than you did in the old ones.
02:07And he can safely choose his next sci-fi blockbuster knowing there's around the clock care.
02:13But he's acutely aware that the charity supporting him is fearing for their future following
02:19the budget.
02:20If it weren't for them, I don't know where I would be.
02:23We need urgent action to ensure social care can survive these rising costs.
02:30One example is carers don't have enough money. Like, staff here have to pay for their own food.
02:38But after they pay all their bills and for children and that, they've got next to nothing.
02:43They can't really. It's just so costly. Cost of living is just ridiculous.
02:50Carton is one of around 100 individuals in the care of the Kent Autistic Trust.
02:55Tamzim is checking in on him today. She's helping come up with his support plans.
03:00For Carton, it's calming him down to prevent meltdowns.
03:04The social care charity also works on proactive measures to keep adults on the autistic spectrum
03:10out of the NHS.
03:12So the staff that are working with people, they have to adapt all the time. They have
03:17to know people inside out. They have to pick up on tiny little clues. They need to know
03:23what to do about them. They need to memorise lots of things. And then they need to change
03:28that for every single person that they're working with. So, yeah, it's really, really
03:34skilled work.
03:35The organisation has been supporting people on the autistic spectrum for more than 30
03:40years, but says this is the biggest financial challenge they've faced.
03:45It welcomes the rise in the national living wage, but with national insurance contributions
03:50changing, they say they'll need an 11% increase in funding to meet that.
03:55This decision had unintended consequences, because the consequences are the collapse
04:01of the sector. And what would happen then? I'd rather not think about that, to be honest,
04:08because you can't imagine a society and a community without being able to support the
04:15most vulnerable.
04:16So Labour, in the election campaign, were promising community care. That's what they
04:20wanted to focus on. We've now got this budget, and you feel it's doing the complete opposite.
04:25How does that feel?
04:26We are quite taken aback that this would be the right way forward, to actually rate providers
04:36who themselves need investment at the moment.
04:38The county council says the £600 million the government is promising won't even scratch
04:44the surface.
04:45We are advocating that government exempt social care providers from this change in national
04:52insurance. The public sector is, in effect, compensated for it, but this is a case of
04:58commissioned services, and those providers are not, under the current arrangements, reimbursed.
05:04That means that they end up coming under yet more severe pressure.
05:09With more than one in 100 people on the autistic spectrum, the Trust fears the consequences
05:15these changes could bring, and is calling on the government to reverse reforms or provide
05:20further financial support for the sector.
05:23Gabriel Morris in Canterbury.
05:26Next tonight, a fourth person has been arrested following a fire in Canterbury city centre.
05:32This was just some of the damage caused by the fire last Monday. Roads had to be closed
05:36and residents of nearby buildings were evacuated, while Kent Police and the fire service dealt
05:41with the incident around 8pm that evening.
05:43The latest arrest, a 16-year-old boy from Canterbury who has now been bailed, and it
05:48comes after the arrests of a 15-year-old boy and a 12-year-old girl who were both bailed
05:52as investigations continue.
05:54Another 15-year-old boy from Ashford was arrested on suspicion of arson, but has since been
05:58released without charge.
06:00We're yet to hear from the service what exactly caused the fire.
06:05A crash has flipped a car onto its roof in Staplehurst this morning.
06:11As you can see here, emergency services were on the scene, fire crews helped rescue a driver
06:16from the car.
06:17The collision at the roundabout outside Sainsbury's means the A229 station road remains blocked
06:23and delays should be expected for anyone travelling through the area.
06:26One witness said a woman was pulled from the car but appeared unharmed, while locals
06:31were reportedly unsurprised at the incident due to repeated dangerous driving.
06:35The police told us there were no serious injuries to anyone and they've now left the scene.
06:44Thousands were faced with disappointment this weekend after Rochester's Dickensian Christmas
06:48Festival was cancelled because of Storm Darrah.
06:51Visit Medway confirmed the iconic costume parade won't be rescheduled but are still
06:55hoping to do something special this weekend.
06:58For now, local businesses say they've been left in the lurch, missing out on a crucial
07:02Christmas sales boost.
07:04Aidan McNamee has been speaking with businesses in Rochester today and joins me in the studio now.
07:08Aidan, obviously extremely devastating for a lot of the businesses who have been looking
07:12forward to this, this annual event that happens every year in Rochester.
07:17How's it looking now?
07:19Are they getting anything back on track?
07:22Well, you know, people are doing their best but unfortunately with an event of this size
07:25it's not something that can easily just be bumped a week in the calendar.
07:29So far we haven't got many details, all we know is that on top of the arts markets, the
07:33farmers markets and all the Christmas festivities, the council is working to bring something
07:37special this weekend beyond what was already planned.
07:40But unfortunately, as we already know, we're missing out on the parade, we're missing out
07:44on some of the costumes, we're not going to get the full scale of the event we were hoping for.
07:48And it's such a shame because it brings in so many people to Rochester.
07:51What will be happening instead? Do we have any idea of what it could look like?
07:54Well, as I say, there will still be a fair amount of festive cheer.
07:58There will be arts, there will be crafts, there will be farmers markets, there will
08:02be everything we could normally expect of a Christmas, but unfortunately no Dickens.
08:06You can see how busy it is in previous years on the screen there and some of those costumes
08:10you were talking about as well.
08:12How has the festival's cancellation affected those local businesses?
08:16You've been out in Rochester today speaking with Sam.
08:18Yes, I have.
08:19And of course, you know, for an event of this scale, businesses have been stocking up and
08:22they've been preparing.
08:23Now, some businesses have affected more than others, hospitality, restaurants and whatnot.
08:28They've bought in stock that can go bad, that can't just be held on to.
08:31However, I spoke to one owner of a comic book shop who gave a bit more insight on it.
08:37Honestly, I'm gutted.
08:41You just feel gutted and deflated because there really isn't anything you can do about it.
08:51I think we had some issues with the end of the audio there, but tell me a bit more about
08:56what the owner was telling you today.
08:58Well, you know, to put it simply, he was absolutely gutted to see the festival being cancelled.
09:02He told me, you know, selling comics, toys, that sort of thing.
09:05He would do a huge trade on the Christmas markets, so not having it this weekend would
09:10be a massive blow for him.
09:12You know, he fared better than most.
09:14He told me he can keep his stock in reserve, of course, and also operates the business
09:19online.
09:20However, not every business in Rochester has that opportunity available to them.
09:23Especially for a very small independent business that relies on people, that footfall, people
09:27walking down the high street and spotting them.
09:29Aidan, thank you very much for those details.
09:33Next this evening, 34 arrests and more than £220,000 in drugs, cash, weapons and weapons
09:40have been seized in Kent as part of a National County Lines crackdown.
09:44Police body cam footage reveals the key moments when items were found and then seized.
09:49Kristen Hawthorne has more.
09:5434 arrests and £120,000 worth of drugs were seized.
09:58This body cam footage shows the moments Kent Police carried out the final stages of a major
10:03drug crackdown operation.
10:12This location is linked to the supply of class A drugs in West Kent.
10:17In this corner, you've got this, what's been used as a shoe rack.
10:21And in one of the shoes at the bottom, this particular shoe, located a quantity of cash
10:27in, which I'll leave there for a second, plus a large chain of some sort.
10:35Large amount of cash.
10:38Officers also seized more than £100,000 in cash, 14 weapons, 2 firearms and 16 mobile phones.
10:45So far, a total of 22 suspects have been charged with almost 70 separate offences.
10:51Throughout the week, Kent Police also identified 10 vulnerable people, including two children,
10:56believed to have been exploited by criminal gangs.
10:59A total of around £37,000 in cash was also seized from two addresses that were searched
11:04in the Snodland area.
11:06In Moorgate, this vehicle was also searched, where 86 wraps of class A drugs were seized,
11:11along with a machete, three mobile phones and some cash.
11:16Hello mate, you alright?
11:17Yes, thank you.
11:18Yeah? You sure?
11:19Yeah, yeah, yeah.
11:20Oh, cool. Alright, no worries. Your engine's running.
11:34Kristen Hawthorne for KMTV.
11:37The drugs are in the back.
11:40Now it's time for a very quick break, but coming up, more news from right across Kent.
11:44See you in a few minutes.
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20:34always on a Monday, the show's producer Bartholomew Hall joins me now. Let's start with Gillingham
20:39then, a much needed win. Yeah, this man on the screen here, Jadon Clarke, the star of
20:43the show, as he has been many times this season, getting all that one goal that was needed
20:47to get the 1-0 win over Salford. It's taken them up to 10th in the table, it's Jadon Clarke's
20:53sixth goal of the season and I know we've spoken a lot about Gillingham's struggles,
20:57they've only picked up, what now, two wins in the last 12 games. They've also had, it's
21:02also their 10th clean sheet of the season, so you know, a real testament to their defence,
21:08their really strong defence that Gillingham have had this season so far. Next up, they're
21:12facing AFC Wimbledon away, a fixture they've already had this year so far already. So you
21:17know, as we look towards the sort of mid part of the season now, Christmas is approaching,
21:20they'll have the return fixture of that Bromley game that really didn't end well for them
21:24last week on Boxing Day. You know, hopefully things will start to look up and they'll start
21:29to look up the table as we go into that second half. We can hear from Mark Bonner now speaking
21:34and he had a few positive words to say about his team.
21:37We made loads of changes to the starting team and the squad overall and needed some reaction
21:44from Wednesday, which we got. I really like the commitment of the team and when you've
21:49got 26 games left or whatever it is, I think you just look at that and say like, that is
21:55your minimum level that you have to, you expect to see in them.
22:00Yes, so we can move on now to cricket, of course, one manager to, well, the next head
22:04coach there after three months after Matt Walker stepped down from his role, after what
22:07was a pretty successful, pretty turbulent end to his time in charge of Kent Cricket.
22:12We do have his replacement. Adam Holliake has been named as the new head coach, obviously
22:17following what was not a very happy end to Kent Cricket's season this year, being relegated
22:23from Division 2 of the county championship. He actually begins his tenure with a county
22:27championship Division 2 match away to Northamptonshire. That's on Friday, the 4th of April. So we'll
22:34be looking forward to maybe Kent Cricket turning things around next season. Just a quick word
22:39on Holliake and his career. He's had a 16-year playing career, capped in Surrey to nine trophies
22:44and led England in ODIs. But of course, our attention turns to Invicta Sport tonight,
22:49where, well, one of our production assistants, Etelie, has been taking part in handball.
22:55It's a sport that's not particularly popular here in the country. It's very popular over
22:58in Europe. And there's one team in Medway that's hoping to change that around and bring
23:02it to the forefront. And she's been along to meet them.
23:06During the 2021 and 2022 Handball Champions League, over one billion people tuned in to
23:12watch. Considering this, there is not much of a scene in the UK. However, local team
23:18the Medway Falcons hopes to change this. I came down to the under-15 Medway Falcons
23:24girls training to get a taste of what their training is like.
23:28Handball is fast-paced, with players attacking and defending together. It requires quick
23:32decision-making, jumping to shoot and strong defence. Former Manchester United goalkeeper
23:39Peter Schmeichel accredits many of his signature moves, like the star jump, to playing handball
23:44in his youth.
23:46The Medway Falcons have been growing since 2013, with a women's team and men's team taking
23:51part in the league. Now, on top of these teams, they brought handball to many local schools
23:56to train up a future generation of handball players. This includes 14-year-old Nelly,
24:02who recently got accepted to the GB Handball Squad.
24:05I started playing when I was four. And I only started playing because my sisters and my
24:11mother would play. I would love to become a professional. And since I've already been
24:16playing it for eight years, I don't think it will be hard for me. And since I already
24:21have a lot of ideas of the sport, I just find it easier. I'm looking forward to playing
24:28in the GB team because we could play a lot internationally. And leading from there, I
24:35can go and represent my home country.
24:38Despite the growing popularity of the sport, the UK still faces some issues. The team's
24:43coach, Ivona, shed some light on why this may be.
24:47Personally, in my opinion, there is not a lot of money being put towards handball. If
24:52we could get more money, more advertisement of the handball, I'm sure there would be more
25:00people coming to handball.
25:02And many of the girls are not choosing to stop now.
25:05I would love to play handball for my life.
25:09Because I really do enjoy it and there's a lot of success, I think I will continue in
25:14the future.
25:15I'd like to go further in handball, you know, maybe aim for GB.
25:20After feeling inspired hearing the girls, I decided to put my skills to the test and
25:25have a go at shooting a penalty.
25:28Etelie Reynolds for KMTV.
25:33Perhaps we'll get Etelie in for a bit more practice there. Almost a shot on target there.
25:37More of that in Invictus Sport of course.
25:39But just before we go this evening, ending the show on a light note, for the third year
25:43in a row, Lux Moralis plans to return to Canterbury to host a medieval light show.
25:48From this Friday to the 21st of December, this immersive experience will transform the
25:53walls of St Augustine's Abbey and the King's School into an Anglo-Saxon art piece for the
25:57very first time.
25:59It came to Canterbury back in 2022 for their Renaissance display.
26:03The fantastic tales and where to find them show will display middle-aged artefacts and
26:08religious manuscripts from the British Library too.
26:11Beautiful.
26:12That's all we've got time for this evening on Kent Tonight, live here on KMTV.
26:18There's of course more news made just for Kent throughout the evening, starting in just
26:21three minutes' time with a brand new episode of Invictus Sport.
26:24But in the meantime, you can keep up to date with the latest news across your county by
26:28logging onto our website, it's kmtv.co.uk, and keep us on all your social timelines too.
26:34Just search for KMTV Kent.
26:35I'll see you in a few minutes for Invictus Sport.
26:58you