NEWS
insideSTORY
CHATHAM HISTORIC DOCKYARD TRUST SECURES £ 350,000 TOWARDS THE RESTORATION OF BRITAIN’ S OLDEST NAVAL RESIDENCE
The Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust has been awarded £ 350,000 in grants from the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Wolfson Foundation, designated for the preservation of Commissioner’ s House, the oldest intact naval residence in the country. Built in 1704 for Captain George St Lo, the Commissioner’ s House has remained largely unchanged for over three centuries.
The Commissioner’ s House restoration project will safeguard the building’ s historic fabric, protect its exhibits and collections, reduce its carbon footprint and enhance physical access to broaden public engagement.
“ We are incredibly thankful to both foundations for their generous grants,” said Richard Morsley, chief executive of Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust.“ Commissioner’ s House is one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture and sits proudly within the Historic Dockyard estate, which is home to over 100 historic buildings and structures including 47 Scheduled Ancient Monuments – the largest concentration in Kent. This funding is vital in helping us preserve these important heritage assets for future generations.”
RSPCA SUPER CAMPAIGNER AND LITTER PICKER SPREADS ANIMAL WELFARE MESSAGE
MAIDSTONE LITFEST RETURNS FOR ITS THIRD YEAR
Chantal Highsted has demonstrated her passion for making her local community and the wider country a better place for every kind of animal, being recognised for her‘ super campaigning’ work for the RSPCA and plans to create a wildlife haven on a derelict site in Kent. While also volunteering as a Wildlife Friend with the RSPCA, she has been busy highlighting animal welfare issues in local schools, campaigning on key issues online and raising community awareness for the charity’ s campaign: Dogs Die in Hot Cars.
A self-professed lover of the outdoors and Gillingham native, she has helped protect and nurture wildlife by undertaking tasks for the RSPCA’ s Wildlife Friends microvolunteering scheme including cleaning up litter‘ grot spots’, creating compost heaps and planting wildlife-friendly plants. Chantal’ s dedicated efforts earned her recognition in the RSPCA’ s Impact Awards, which celebrate the hard work of staff and volunteers who made a huge impact on animal welfare in 2024.
Following World Book Day, Maidstone Borough Council has announced its support of the Maidstone Literary Festival in 2025, which is led by directors Jodi Eeles and Rebecca Grace. Working with the organisers, Maidstone LitFest will take place between 4- 11 October, bringing beloved authors to events across the town centre for booklovers of all ages to enjoy.
The Hazlitt Theatre is also supporting the 2025 LitFest, with plans to host several events. Tracy Burke, marketing manager at the venue, commented:“ We will be hosting a wide selection of page-to-stage adaptations for every generation, such as Spot’ s Birthday Party, The Wizard of Oz and Sherlock Holmes: The Last Act, and of course our own hotly-anticipated Hazlitt productions including our summer open-air tour in partnership with Maidstone Borough Council, Wind in the Willows and Dick Whittington at the end of the year! LitFest is a great celebration of all things literary, bringing the community together; as a proud cultural hub of the town, we cannot wait to be part of showcasing LitFest’ s everimpressive events.”
178 • www. insidekent. co. uk