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Climate Change and Biodiversity

August 2026

River Medway Engagement Day

Last month, the 'Caring for the River Medway' Engagement Day invited residents from across the borough to Coronation Square, Lockmeadow, to reflect on their own relationship with the River Medway, take part in various activities and learn about River Guardianship.

The Friends of River Medway are a group of advocates, lawyers, scientists and more, working to provide legal rights and ecological health for the River Medway. This great work follows the concerning statistic that only 14% of rivers meet good ecological standards in the UK.

The Engagement Day began with a litter pick across three different spots of the Medway, with over ten bags of rubbish cleared from the riverside. Along with model raft building, the group took a reflective walk to Allington Lock and made individual pledges to support the Friends' efforts.

The council supported the event and has recently become the first council in the country to adopt the Rights of Nature framework, a legal movement that recognises ecosystems and natural entities' right to exist.

Five Maidstone parks retain Green Flag Awards

Five Maidstone parks have proudly raised their prestigious Green Flag Award after achieving the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.

Maidstone Borough Council is celebrating Green Flag Awards for Brenchley Gardens, Clare Park, Cobtree Manor Park, Mote Park and Whatman Park (Millennium River Park).

It comes as the internationally-recognised standard for parks and green spaces celebrates its 30th year.

These Maidstone parks help to bring the total award-winners in the UK up to a record-breaking 2,391! A fantastic testament to the hard work, passion and dedication of the teams who care for these green spaces, ensuring they are maintained to a high standard for visitors and residents to enjoy.

This is the second consecutive year that Brenchley Gardens has been awarded the honour, thanks to our Parks and Open Spaces Team, supported by the in-house Grounds Maintenance Team. Together, they have transformed the gardens into a thriving green space that serves the community whilst balancing public use with biodiversity and conservation.

© iStock

Eco Hub 2026 

The Maidstone EcoHub is back for its fifth year!

Join us for workshops, arts and crafts or to speak to our excellent partners to celebrate the wonderful biodiversity and sustainability projects our borough has to offer.

Location: Creative Maidstone Community Arts Hub, Gabriel's Hill, Maidstone, Kent, ME15 6JR

Dates and times:

Come along and speak to our stallholders, staff and volunteers!

New pond in Brenchley Gardens attracts urban wildlife

A pond has recently been installed by the Grounds Team in Brenchley Gardens. It is a small 2mx3m shallow wildlife pond designed to create habitats for a variety of wildlife. A camera has been installed to capture the wildlife - it has certainly been popular!

The footage shows that birds, foxes, and other wildlife have already discovered it and are making use of the pond area. This follows an intense dry period, with ponds such as this providing life-saving drinking sources.

The Grounds Team hope to install more of these ponds across the borough. 

School Streets - reducing pollution around places of learning

Kent County Council is trialling a new 'School Streets' initiative at Brunswick House Primary School, hoping to create a safer, healthier and more pleasant environment for everyone.

The trial involves temporarily restricting motor vehicle access outside the main entrance to Brunswick House Primary School during school drop-off and pick-up times. People will still be able to access the gym at these times, and the emergency services will be exempt; residents can also apply for an exemption permit.

The main aims of the trial is to:

• improve road safety for children and families
• reduce traffic congestion and pollution
• encourage more walking, wheeling and cycling (active travel) to school
• create a calmer and more pleasant environment outside the school.

Rehoming your pets responsibly

Unwanted pets should never be released into ponds, lakes, parks or the wider environment. Doing so can create welfare concerns for the animals involved and impacts for local wildlife and habitats.

Summer Holiday Repair Cafe! 

Maidstone's monthly Repair Café was in full swing on August 1, bringing together talented fixers and menders who repaired a wide range of items that would otherwise have been thrown away.

This month, the theme was Children and Families; there were some great activities for children including games, colouring and free books. Maidstone's next Repair Café will be on 5 September - with the theme of 'Art'! Save your items from landfill and come along. 

Screen-free summer holiday activities

It can be challenging for parents and carers to keep their children entertained throughout the long summer break. The Conservation Volunteers have compiled a list of nature-based, screen-free activities to entertain little ones this summer. 

Some examples include: 

• Gardening
• Adventure Days
• Citizen science for families

Switch Together

Could solar power help cut your energy bills?

Through Switch Together Maidstone (previously Solar Together), residents, businesses and community buildings can access competitive group-buying discounts on:

☀️ Solar panels

🔋 Battery storage

⚡ EV chargepoints

💡 Green tariff switching

🏠 Heat pumps (coming soon)

Get a free personalised cost estimate and find out what could work for your property.

Expect professional installers and average savings of around 20% on standard rates! 

Have Your Say on Life in Maidstone

We're inviting residents to share their views on living in Maidstone as part of our Resident Survey 2026.

We want to hear about your day-to-day experience of living here, from your local neighbourhood to the services you use and rely on.

What matters to you most in your local area?

Your feedback will help shape future services, priorities and investment across the borough.

The survey takes just 9–12 minutes to complete and covers topics including:

 - Local communities
 - Health and wellbeing
 - Parks and green spaces
 - Opportunities and skills
 - Council services 

As a thank you, everyone who completes the survey will receive a 15% discount at Go Ape, Leeds Castle and will be entered into a prize draw to win a range of local prizes.

The consultation closes on 30 August 2026.

Take part today and help shape Maidstone's future.

Grants and Funding

Kent Community Waste Prevention fund 

The fund provides grants of up to £5,000 to support community-led projects to deliver new or expanded, innovative waste prevention and reuse initiatives resulting in a prevention or reduction of household waste.

Get a funded heat pump - and the support to install it in your own home!

Start at Home is a scheme run by NESTA that helps heating engineers install a heat pump in their own property, with up to £7,500 of kit covered by the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) grant. Getting the experience provides you with the confidence to promote to your customers.

Here's how it works:

1. Sign up with a scheme provider 
2. Get your heat pump kit, funded by a government grant (up to £7,500)
3. Get support with design and installation
4. Walk away with the skills and credibility to offer heat pumps to your customers

National Education Nature Park grant

The Department of Education is offering grants of up to £5,000 for selected schools, nurseries and colleges to create or improve areas for biodiversity and nature, while getting pupils involved in monitoring and learning about them. For 2026–27, £2 million has been allocated to 765 eligible settings.

Eligible settings must meet all of the following criteria to apply. They must:

• be in a lower-layer super output area (LSOA) in category 1 or 2 of Natural England’s accessible natural greenspace inequalities indicator;
• be in an LSOA with an index of multiple deprivation (IMD) decile score between 1 and 3;
• have submitted a school-level census return in the spring term of the 2025 to 2026 academic year;
• be listed as eligible for funding for the 2026 to 2027 academic year;
• have not previously been eligible for nature park grant funding.

Tree Council grants

The Tree Council actively supports community tree, hedgerow, and orchard projects that boost agricultural productivity and create publicly-accessible green spaces that promote physical and mental well-being. 

There are multiple grants available, including:

• Branching Out Fund - Grants of between £250 and £2,500 for community groups, schools, small registered charities, and Tree Warden Networks (among others), with a quicker decision for those seeking funding below £500.
• National Highways 3 Million Trees Project - Free trees only for planting projects in England. A selection of tree species, with orders of between 2,500 – 50,000 whips available to a wide range of applicants, including charities, farms, education institutions and more.
• Trees Outside Woodland Fund – Grants of between £10,000 and £40,000 for local authorities and registered charities (including heritage sites) with incomes over £100k.

Get Involved

New items for free?

Instead of purchasing something new, why not shop locally on low-cost or free item exchange sites?
You can save items from landfill while saving money! 

Freegle is a UK-based online charity network where people give away unwanted items or ask for things they need for free. Its main goal is to promote reuse and keep usable items out of landfills. 

Freecycle is a free, online movement where people give away unwanted items to neighbours or find free pre-loved goods locally.

Help protect the River Medway by becoming a River Guardian

Do you want to make a difference for your local river? The South East Rivers Trust is encouraging residents to become River Guardians for the Medway, helping to tackle plastic pollution and protect wildlife.

Volunteers are supported with free equipment and can adopt a stretch of river, carrying out simple actions like litter picking and reporting issues.

The River Medway is a vital part of Maidstone’s natural environment, supporting a wide range of wildlife and providing an important blue corridor through the borough.

From kingfishers and fish to riverside habitats, it plays a key role in local biodiversity and is increasingly under pressure from pollution, particularly plastics.

By getting involved, you can help protect this much-loved river, improve habitats and keep it healthy for future generations.

Taking part is also a great way to get outdoors, connect with nature and be part of a growing community taking practical action for the environment. And it's all happening right on our doorstep!

Youth Climate and Nature Panel

The UK Government is creating a new Youth Climate and Nature Panel to put the voices of younger people at the heart of climate and nature policies.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero is looking for passionate young people from across the UK who want to help shape the future of climate and nature policy, share their views, and inspire wider action. 

The panel will bring together young people aged 16 to 25 from across the UK, representing a wide range of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives to:   

• provide insight and advice to government on climate and nature policies
• support better engagement with young people  
• strengthen collaboration between different generations on climate and nature issues  
• help amplify youth voices and action across the UK 

Anti-Idling signs for sites across the borough 

We still have a number of bright and colourful anti-idling banners to offer to schools and other areas, where children and other vulnerable groups gather, or places where drivers frequently idle, adding to air pollution and wasting fuel. These banners were designed by children in Kent as part of a campaign, and their messages help remind drivers to switch off their engines for the benefit of people and planet.

Permission from the landowner will be needed where the banner is affixed

Upcoming Events 

Ulcombe to Sutton Valence via Greensand Way

2 September 2026

Join us on this relaxing weekday guided walk exploring the beautiful countryside between Ulcombe and Sutton Valence. Starting in the peaceful village of Ulcombe, this circular route follows sections of the renowned Greensand Way, taking in rolling farmland, ancient woodland, and some of the finest panoramic views across the Kent Weald.

As you make your way towards the historic hilltop village of Sutton Valence, the route showcases the diverse landscapes that make this part of Kent so special. Quiet country lanes, well-maintained footpaths, and open countryside create a varied and rewarding walk before a return to Ulcombe through peaceful rural scenery.

Maidstone's Repair Café

Maidstone Market
Saturday 5 September

The Maidstone Repair Café takes place in the Market Hall on the first Saturday of the month, where you can bring along broken items and get help from skilled volunteers to fix them, saving waste while learning something new.

September's theme is Art. The Café is free to attend and open to all, it’s a great opportunity to connect, share skills, and be part of a more sustainable community.

Guided Walk of Mote Park - Heritage Open Days

Mote Park Café
Tuesday 15 September

Enjoy a daytime walk with the Mote Park Manager, exploring the living landscape, past and present, and its many uses as one of Maidstone's greatest, most gorgeous assets.

People's Emergency Briefing Screening

Glassbox Theatre, Medway Rd, Gillingham ME7 1FN
Wednesday 14 October

The People's Emergency Briefing is a documentary presented by Chris Packham and features evidence and insights from UK experts on the Climate and Nature crisis. It explores how challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, flooding, food security, public health and the cost-of-living crisis are all interconnected and what they could mean for communities across the UK.

The free screening is part of a nationwide rollout of the documentary and the goal is to bring together local communities, organisations and decision-makers to engage with the evidence, encourage discussion and explore how we can build more resilient communities for the future.

To promote your event through the Climate Change & Biodiversity newsletter please email climateandbiodiversity@maidstone.gov.uk

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