Daring to dream….
As Leader of the Borough Council, I am frequently asked “What is your vision for the town?”. My reply is normally “How long have you got?” It often surprises people that, despite being a born and bred Ashfordian, I’m not stuck in the past; we can’t roll the clock back. Like many, I love to […]
Election results 2023
( date from Ashford Borough Council ) Congratulations to all newly elected Councillors. We look forward to working with you. Interesting times ahead for Ashford Borough Council.
Noel Ovenden speaks to the Kentish Express
I came into local politics nine years ago because I believed that Wye residents needed an alternative and that national party politics had no place in Ashford Borough Council. That belief has not changed; if anything, as the Westminster dramas have continued to unfold over the last two electoral terms, my beliefs have grown stronger. National […]
Lies, damn lies and elections – by Cllr. Heather Hayward
A national party keeps posting on their social media about the NHS…and how a vote for them on 4th May will ‘Save the NHS’. Well, if it were a General Election then yes, maybe. But this is a local election not one for Westminster. In my four years as an Ashford Borough Councillor, not once […]
Ai has 18 candidates standing this May!
Ashford Independent has 18 candidates successfully nominated in next month’s Borough-wide elections – a mixture of seats we already hold and wards where we are challenging. Most of our current Councillors are standing again, to represent you, the residents, without having to square that duty with a party political agenda. During the next month, our […]
Saved from Development!
In his other role as Chairman of Wye Parish Council, Ashford Councillor Noel Ovenden played a key role in securing Wye Methodist Church as an asset for the local community this February. With the building no longer used for worship, it came up for auction. Noel was determined to save it from the developers, so […]
We know where we’re going!
Ashford Indpendent Councillors have been trying to help us find our way around by making sure road signs have the correct information and are clean enough to read. Cllr Howard Turner (Bybrook) likes to see the neighbourhood looking tidy, and he has a hands on approach (literally) to making that happen. Howard has run a […]
Conservation in Appledore
Isle of Oxney candidate Simon Honnor is already making a difference! Like most villages in the Ashford countryside, Appledore has had a lot of housing development and people are very concerned about the threat from new proposals. So, I was immediately concerned when villagers came to me for help about a fresh planning application in […]
The demise of democracy
Somehow the Government have decided, contrary to the evidence, that the planning system is holding up the building of new homes so, in the Queens speech, it was unveiled that the biggest shake up to the planning system since 1947 is on the cards. The proposed reforms will make it more difficult for existing homeowners […]
Local elections 6th May 2021 – what they mean for Ashford
As the leaflets start to flow through your letter boxes you will have noticed that it’s election time ( again)…. In our area you will be voting to elect our representatives on Kent County Council. Ashford Borough has 7 KCC Wards. You can see which one your home is in, in the […]