On 11 November, the nation will mark the day 100 years ago when the guns fell silent at the end of WW1 - and communities across the district are invited to get involved.

Battle's Over is a unique series of events involving organisations and communities across the nation.  If you're planning or would like to hold a Battle's Over event, please see our Battle's Over page.

DDC has been awarded a number of commemorative silhouettes from the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, which will be on display in communities across the district.

• More on Battle's Over 

Structural completion of the new £26 million Dover District Leisure Centre has been marked with a “topping out” ceremony just nine months after the ground-breaking. The centre is all set for an early 2019 opening.   

Work is now underway on the mechanical and electrical installations along with the internal fit-out of the facilities. 

The new facility will be the first swimming pool in Kent to feature poolpod platform lifts to improve pool access for people with disabilities and the less mobile. 

• New Dover District Leisure Centre

Community groups and organisations across the district have benefited from £23,500 funding from Dover District Council.

More organisations than ever before applied for grant funding from the Dover District Community Grants Scheme and funding was allocated to 32 different community groups.

Grants were available for up to £1,000 in each of the five Neighbourhood Forum areas. Groups were presented with certificates at a celebration event, including groups in the Sandwich area, (pictured).

• More on Community Grants 

Dover District Council has invested in the creation of five new retail units in Market Place, in the centre of Aylesham, (pictured).  

This follows news that St James in Dover continues to go from strength to strength.  The multi million pound development has now officially been opened, with a range of major retailers, stores and great reasons to visit. The St James development is acting as a catalyst for new investment in Dover Town Centre, with developers looking to bring forward further regeneration projects. 

• Invest In Dover

Work is due to start in the autumn on building works in Kearsney Abbey as part of the £3.1m Heritage Lottery funded Kearsney Parks project. Work includes restoration of the Grade ll listed former billiards room, and the construction of a new extension, with an enlarged cafe and new customer toilets.

DDC has also received initial National Lottery support for the restoration of the Maison Dieu in Dover. The project aims to restore key parts of the Grade l listed building & Scheduled Monument.  Funding has been awarded by the Heritage Lottery Fund to help DDC progress plans.

• More on Kearsney Parks

As the summer months recede behind us, we continue to support the 'Beauty of the Beach' campaign to celebrate our beaches and keep them clean.  

As part of this work, DDC introduced extra environmental enforcement patrols on Deal Beach.  Additional patrols, which started in July and run through to the end of September, were funded by Southern Water.

This follows news from Southern Water last year that the beach around Deal Castle has been chosen for an investment of around £3.9m to help protect and enhance the area.

• Beaches in Dover District 

We continue to support groups who are interested in delivering Community Led Housing in the district. We recently held our first Community Housing and Self-build Conference (pictured) and asked people to let us know what training they needed, and how they would like this to be provided. 

We have listened to the suggestions and will be running a programme of short courses starting this month, including training on 10 September at DDC offices in Whitfield, 5pm-7pm, on the Homes England Community Housing Fund. More courses will follow in the New Year!

• More on Community Led Housing

A special event is being held at the Dover District Council offices in Whitfield on Thursday 8 November from 6pm to 8.30pm for anyone interested in finding out more about becoming a Dover District Councillor. 

The next Dover District Council elections will be held on 2 May 2019. The prospective councillor event is being organised by the Democratic Services team and will explain the process involved in standing for election, as well as what the Council does and what life as a District Councillor is really like.  

For more information, or to book your place, please call 01304 872303 or email democraticservices@dover.gov.uk

• More on Councillors and Elections

Your vote matters - make sure you don't lose it.  Have you responded to your registration form?  You can reply in 4 ways, simply click it, text it, ring it or post it.

For more information, please visit the Elections page on the DDC website or email vote@dover.gov.uk

• More on registering to vote