I have lived in Golden Green for around ten years, having moved here from Dartford, Kent. What appealed to me about Golden Green was the true Kentish flavour of the place - the orchards, hop fields and even the country accents. As a newcomer, albiet a Kentish newcomer, I found the villagers to be more than hospitable. Times are a changing, though. More outsiders unwilling to greet you "good morning" are sadly on the increase. This is not isolated to Golden Green as one finds these attitudes rife now in the South East. People now seem to be more suspicious, partly due to the increase in crime...and Golden Green has seen its fair share of breakins and car crime recently.
What we need in the village is an essential meeting place. I know we already have the Bell Inn and the hall, but these are not essential in that you don,t really have to visit these, and many of the OAPs in the area are teetotal. But, we all have to eat and most of us buy newspapers....so we need a shop! A shop is more than a place to buy provisions...it is in itself a meeting area...for gossip? Well, gossip can be redefined as local information and this would help to keep the crime rate down...far better, surely, than any neighbourhood watch?
A shop could be provided on the old Victoria Garage site (owned by Bob Short) and funded by the Rural Development Council. If you think this viable, tell your local councillor or the GGA to get something up and running!
Three Elm Lane needs some attention, too. Since I moved here, the levels of traffic have increased threefold. The speed of the traffic has gone up, also. TRAFFIC CALMING MEASURES ARE NEEDED NOW!!!! Again, tell your councillor or write to KCC directly. Signs are being ignored. Like the 30mph limit or the "unsuitable for HGV" sign at the beginning of Three Elm Lane. Lets badger the police for some ACTION! For too long, Golden Green has lived in the shadow of Hadlow. WE need some action on local issues taken. This can be achieved by writing & pestering. Sadly, there seems no other way thesedays.
Letters to the Tonbridge Courier are one way: e-mail them here.
Comments to The Hamlet newsletter is another: Linda Daker 01732 851969
More information on rural action plans can be obtained from The Campaign for the Protection of Rural England
Overall Golden Green, being in an area of outstanding natural beauty, is a very attractive place to live but we all need to keep alert to stop it from becoming overdeveloped like so many other Kent villages and hamlets.
Please visit other sites I have built.The British
Alien Research Archives is my latest.
Sacred Places of the World was an
earlier one.
Heavy lorrys are now servicing the Hawk Spring Water company on Style Place Farm.
Both Cemetery Lane & Victoria Road are designated 'quiet lanes'
& are unsuitable for the 40 tonne lorries which are now calling at the site.
The village sign design hs been chosen and the signpost will be erected on the grass triangle at the junction of Hartlake Road & Three Elm Lane later in the year.
Be aware of strangers around Golden Green in the afternoons.
recently, there has been a spate of break-ins during the afternoon,
this being the time, of course, when most people are at work.
A rep. from the GGA will be on hand in the Bell Inn on the 1st Monday of every month from 8pm onwards.
Poet's Corner still needs content.Please e mail any suitable poems of a
Kentish flavour for submission. Also, the guestbook is now in place....feel
free to submit any comments you have for public viewing.
Also, feel free to use any text or images on this site for use on your own.
This is in keeping with the spirit of the net.
Any Golden Green-based business who would like a page dedicated to
their company on this site please e-mail me. The service will be free and
may well benefit you.
If anybody, wishs to submit articles, news or other bits and pieces for these pages they are more than welcome.
Other Links
Hadlow College of Agriculture
Hadlow College Equestrian Centre
Hadlow Amateur Dramatic Society
Golden Green Research Foundation...India!!
Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells Fabian Society
Kent County Scout Council
North West Kent Family History Society
West on the Web
The River Medway-Text & Images
Vinyards of Kent
Churches of Kent
South East Tourist Board
The Langley Hotel & Garden Restaurant
The Sittingbourne & Kemsley Light Railway
UK.Local.Kent Newsgroup FAQ & links
Last-Chance Animal Rescue Center
This is Kent & East Sussex
National Farmers Union
Meridian TV
The Sandwich, Kent site
VASNET (Local ISP)
FIRENET (Local ISP)
Golden Green Association 01732 851969/850739
Hadlow Parish Council 01732 851878
Tonbridge & Malling BC 01732 844522
Kent County Council 01622 671411
Hadlow Services 01732 850214/850632
Golden Green Marquee 01732 850329
Golden Green Lottery 01732 850758
Hall Bookings 01732 850706
Tourist Information 01732 770929
The Golden Green Pages 07050 696425/fax:07050 696426
© (1998)
