Kent County Council

KCC to consider return to all-night lighting

5 February 2016 1 Comment

Streetlights-LEDA preferred option to return to all-night street lighting when Kent’s new energy-efficient Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps are installed – meeting residents’ needs and savings targets – will be considered next week by Kent County Council members.

Work to convert the county’s 118,000 street lights to LED is due to begin in residential areas next month and will be completed within 38 months.

This will save Kent taxpayers up to £5.2 million a year, once installed.

The newly-upgraded lighting will be connected to an individual central management system (CMS) that will allow the authority to monitor and provide optimal lighting levels in the future. (more…)

Environment, Kent County Council, News, Safety, Transport

Alerts feed added to web site

1 February 2016 0 Comments

We’ve added a twitter feed to our website for alerts from:

  • Kent County Council Public Protection
    Consumer & business alerts about Scams, Rogue Traders, Major Incidents, Severe Weather, Recalls & more.
  • Recall Database
    Aiming to bring all of the UK product safety notices and recalls together in one place.
  • The National Trading Standards eCrime Team
    tackling online consumer scams, rip-offs and fraud, as well as those committed by text or email.
  • Action Fraud
    The UK’s national fraud & cyber reporting centre where you can report, get advice and information

Check the Public Protection feed in the right hand margin to keep abreast of consumer and fraud alerts

Consumer, Crime, Kent County Council, News, website

Contract awarded to convert street lights to LED

29 January 2016 0 Comments

Streetlights-LEDThe contract to convert Kent’s 118,000 streetlights to energy-efficient Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology has been awarded to engineering and infrastructure firm Bouygues Energies & Services.

The newly upgraded lighting will be connected to an individual central management system (CMS) that will allow Kent County Council to monitor and adapt lighting levels in the future.

Work to convert streetlights to LED is due to begin in residential areas in March 2016 and will be completed within 38 months. Once completed, this will save Kent taxpayers up to £5.2 million a year. (more…)

Environment, Kent County Council, News, Transport

Fraudsters pretend to work for BT

26 January 2016 0 Comments

tps-logoKent Trading Standards have received reports of scam phone calls and letters from people claiming to work for the telecommunication service, BT.

The caller asks for an upfront fee of £300 to opt-out of scam telephone calls and tries to gain the resident’s confidence by quoting the last four digits of their credit card. The caller then asks for the beginning of their credit card number to complete the transaction. They may also send a letter as shown here.

We believe this person may be using the identity of an existing company to scam residents.

Registration with TPS is Free. TPS is the only official UK ‘do not call’ register for opting out of live telesales calls. The TPS register is established and supported by legislation. Organisations which want to make live telesales calls in the UK are legally required to screen their sales lists against the TPS list.

For advice and to report issues to KCC Trading Standards contact
Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06
Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

Kent Trading Standards 25 January 2016

Consumer, Crime, Kent County Council, News

Blue Badge scam

22 January 2016 0 Comments

Blue badgeWe have received reports of bogus Blue Badge websites charging £49 for a badge. The websites will ask for your personal information and will not have the authority to issue you a Blue Badge.

The official Blue Badge costs £10, you can find more information and apply or renew your Blue Badge by visiting the Kent County Council website.

You can contact Kent County Council’s Blue Badge Team on 03000 416262 or bluebadgeteam@kent.gov.uk.

For advice and to report issues to KCC Trading Standards contact
Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06
Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

Crime, Kent County Council, News

Internet Safety Taster Session

21 January 2016 0 Comments

Computer userAshford Library is supporting Safer Internet Day 2016 by holding a free taster session on using the internet safely.  Delivered by Adult Education, the session will cover various aspects of using the internet safely, such as online shopping and banking, and how to recognise spam emails.

The course will take place at Ashford Gateway Plus on Tuesday 9 February from 12.30pm to 1.30pm.  Places are free but limited so please book in advance by contacting Ashford Library on 03000 41 31 31, email ashfordlibrary@kent.gov.uk or call in and speak with a member of staff.

We have added this event to our calendar

Find out more about Safer Internet Day

Kent County Council, News, Safety

How well do you know Ashford?

19 January 2016 0 Comments

Kent County CouncilCelebrate National Libraries Day with Ashford Library by taking part in their Ashford Streets quiz, using photographs from their local studies collection.

See how many streets you can correctly name from the photographs – all correct quiz sheets will be entered into a prize draw. Why not also try our quiz on how well you know your library?

Saturday 6th February 2016 – 10.00am to 4.00pm

Heritage, Kent County Council, News

Kent urged to keep warm and well

11 January 2016 0 Comments

Kent County CouncilWith cold and wintry weather predicted over the next few days, families across Kent are being urged to follow a few simple measures to keep their loved ones safe and healthy.

Prolonged cold weather can be a risk for anyone although vulnerable people, including the elderly and children under five, are particularly at risk and common sense advice can help in severe weather, both at home or out and about. (more…)

Health, Kent County Council, News, Safety

Kent parents encouraged to get Sugar Smart

7 January 2016 2 Comments

Sugar Smart by change 4 lifeA new campaign has been launched, encouraging Kent parents to get “Sugar Smart” and take control of their children’s sugar intake.

The Change4Life campaign follows revelations that four-to-10 year olds consume an estimated 5,500 sugar cubes a year (22kg), weighing the same as an average five-year-old.

Currently, 22.5% of four to five-year-olds are overweight or obese in Kent, increasing to 33% in 10 to 11-year-olds. This means they are more likely to become obese adults who are more prone to a range of serious health problems, such as heart disease, some cancers and Type 2 diabetes. Nationally, there are now 2.5 million people suffering from Type 2 diabetes, 90% of which are overweight or obese.

A new Sugar Smart app has been launched nationally to help parents to see how much sugar there is in everyday food and drink. The free app works by scanning the barcode of products and revealing the amount of total sugar it contains in cubes and grams. (more…)

Health, Kent County Council, News