The board shaping up to £20m of spending in Park Wood, Senacre, Shepway and Mangravet has pushed its 10-year plan back from 30 November to January, to hear more from residents first.

The ten-year plan for spending up to £20 million in Park Wood, Senacre, Shepway and Mangravet will not reach the government on 30 November as planned. The neighbourhood board in charge of it has voted to delay it to January 2027.

The decision is in the draft minutes of the board’s meeting on 21 October, published on the council’s committee site (Park Wood and Senacre Neighbourhood Board, draft minutes, 21 October 2026). The board’s engagement sub-group asked for more time to talk to residents. The chair, David Creasey, agreed that “a lot of work was needed before the plan could be submitted”. His proposal to move the deadline was seconded by Maidstone councillor Maureen Cleator and agreed by the board.

We reported in October that the plan was due with the government by 30 November. That story has been updated.

Will the money be late?

Possibly, by a little. The chair told the board he had met a project manager from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The minutes record what the ministry said:

  • the Treasury remains committed to £20 million for the area, though this “could not be guaranteed” if the government changed after the 2029 election
  • a plan sent in as late as February 2027 “may delay the release of the funding from April 2027”
  • the ministry will review the plan as quickly as it can, and a delay should not have a significant impact, because the board has not yet started spending the money it already holds

What the board will do before January

The board agreed a list of things to do in the extra time. They include:

  • three or four festive engagement events in the area, to test the priorities in the board’s roadmap with residents before the investment plan is finalised
  • a short “snap survey”, on paper and online, asking residents which quick wins they want, with council officers recommending it runs for six weeks
  • a separate survey for young people, and a proposal for either a youth sub-group or a young person on the board
  • a flyer drop across the whole area and an updated online hub
  • four litter picks, one in each of the four areas, organised by board members
  • a meet-and-greet before the next board meeting, open to residents and to the administrator of an independent Facebook group that uses the board’s name

About £20,000 of the board’s early “capacity” funding stays set aside for this engagement work.

The board also asked for a short report on how a community grant scheme could work, after hearing of a six-week quick-win grant round run in Brighton. No scheme has been agreed. Nor has any first project: the board’s mid-year return to the ministry leaves its planned projects section blank, because none has been chosen yet.

When the board meets next

The next two meetings are on Tuesday 17 November and Tuesday 15 December, both at 6pm (Park Wood and Senacre Neighbourhood Board meetings). The November meeting was originally meant to sign the plan off. It will now discuss a draft, with four questions for board members to answer:

  1. how the board will keep consulting and working with partners
  2. how it will move towards projects led by the community
  3. how projects for investment will be chosen
  4. how it will measure progress and change course

What it means for you

If you live in Park Wood, Senacre, Shepway or Mangravet, you now have until January to influence the plan, not until the end of November. Watch for the snap survey, the flyer through your door and the festive events, whose dates have not been published yet.

You can already have a say through the council’s Pride in Place page, or by emailing prideinplace@maidstone.gov.uk. Our earlier report explains who sits on the board and how the £20 million is phased over ten years.

The minutes are still a draft and will be confirmed at the November meeting.

Sources