Community action/Malling
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The gift of climate and ecological emergency is that we all get to work together. Ordinary citizens and community groups naturally share what they learn, and what they know of what helps. Everyone can help, everyone has something to offer, everyone is welcome. We all need to design, make and grow a better future for ourselves, our communities and our world. Together we CAN. Yes we CAN.
The aim of this page is to recognise, celebrate and encourage the self-empowerment of community agency networks (CANs) and community groups' activism for climate, environment and many other sustainability topics across Malling. It's an introduction to local networks, groups, and events.
- Malling community resources, Malling community climate and environment action and Neighbourhood Plan for West Malling are separate pages.
CDC video
[edit | edit source]Each week 3 different short videos from across the UK or world.
Rural sustainability UK, Community energy UK, Community action/Argyll and Bute / ...This week's featured Global videos / ... read more about Cosmolocalism
| Map | |
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| Location | West Malling, Kent, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 51° 17' 43.45" N, 0° 24' 34.06" E |
News
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'Not enough water supply' for planned housing, BBC News (Mar 12, 2026) — There is "insufficient" water supply for the number of houses planned in a Kent borough, South East Water has claimed.- Hedgerows the 'unsung heroes of the countryside', BBC News (Feb 16, 2026) — A group of Kent volunteers is aiming to provide vital habitat for wildlife by planting about 3,800 yards (3,500m) of hedgerows in the countryside this year.
- 60 homes proposed by Vita Group at Belvidere House in East Malling close to rejected Ivy Farm site, kentonline.co.uk (Jul 28, 2025) — “The whole battle between locals trying to protect their area from over-development and the developers starts all over again. It’s relentless.” Gary James
- Hedgerows the 'unsung heroes of the countryside', BBC News (Feb 16, 2026) — A group of Kent volunteers is aiming to provide vital habitat for wildlife by planting about 3,800 yards (3,500m) of hedgerows in the countryside this year.
- ‘To live a normal life again, it’s a dream come true’: UK’s first climate evacuees can cast off their homes and trauma, theguardian.com (Feb 09, 2026)
- Behind the scenes as GPs face 'tidal wave of demand', BBC News (Jan 22, 2026)
- Met Office issues rare red weather warning for Wednesday and Thursday, theguardian.com (Jun 22, 2026)
- Rights of Nature movement grows, with the Wye and Ouse subject to new protection charters, wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk (Jun 18, 2026) — Nature sits at the heart of several new sets of rights and charters; it’s even headlining a festival this summer. Is the way that we view and value Nature within our political and cultural frameworks at a turning point? asks Hannah Marsh
- This city had a flooding problem. So it turned to an animal that had been extinct there for 400 years, edition.cnn.com (Jun 18, 2026)
- Amsterdam, along with other major European cities, bans public adverts for meat and fossil fuels [BBC], Daily Alternative (May 22, 2026)
- How reindeer herds, nature and Sámi culture can thrive when forests are restored across northern Europe, theconversation.com (May 15, 2026)
- Rewilding giants: captive elephants rehomed in Europe’s first sanctuary, theguardian.com (May 07, 2026)
- Collaborative Finance (CoFi): rethinking finance for the commons, growingcommons.substack.com (Jun 07, 2026) — What finance looks like when communities build and govern it themselves, Michel Rauchs
- Radical change can lead to a fairer and greener world, says new report, positive.news (Jun 04, 2026) — A major new study argues that rising living standards, shorter working hours and a liveable climate are not competing dreams, but parts of the same future – if the world is willing to tackle extreme inequality
- Rubbish as a resource: How communities in Mozambique transform waste into climate solutions, globalvoices.org (Jun 02, 2026) — Transforming waste into resilience, creativity, and climate solutions in Mozambican communities
Networks, sustainability initiatives and community support
[edit | edit source]- Kings Hill and West Malling Eco Community, private group on facebook.com, link checked 08:43, 2 November 2025 (UTC)
- Friends of the Earth Kings Hill, private group on facebook.com, link checked 08:36, 2 November 2025 (UTC)
- Tonbridge and Malling Friends of the Earth on facebook, link checked 08:41, 2 November 2025 (UTC)
- West Malling Parish Council
Events
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Jun 13, 2026 (Sat) — Malling and District Repair Café, East Malling Village Hall, mallingrepaircafe.co.uk- Jun 28, 2026 (Sun) — West Malling Farmers Market, westmallingfarmersmarket.co.uk
- Jul 18, 2026 (Sat) — Malling and District Repair Café, East Malling Village Hall, mallingrepaircafe.co.uk
- Jul 26, 2026 (Sun) — West Malling Farmers Market, westmallingfarmersmarket.co.uk
Regular events
- Malling and District Repair Café, usually 3rd Saturday of the month, mallingrepaircafe.co.uk
- West Malling Farmers Market, usually on the 4th Sunday of each month, but may be different in December
- Aylesford Farmers Market, usually 3rd Sunday each month. Aylesford Farmers Market on facebook.com
UK events
- Jul 1 - 14, 2026 (Wed - Tue) — Community Energy Fortnight, communityenergyengland.org
- Jul 02, 2026 (Thu) — Cycle to Work Day, cyclescheme.co.uk
- Jul 17 - Aug 9, 2026 (Fri - Sun) — Big Butterfly Count, bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org
- Jul 19 - 25, 2026 (Sun - Sat), The theme for 2026 is JOY — Community Centre Week, octopuscommunities.org.uk
- Jul 24 - Aug 2, 2026 (Fri - Sun) — Love Parks Week, Keep Britain Tidy
Global or international events
- July 2026 — Plastic Free July, plasticfreejuly.org
- Jul 04, 2026 (Sat) — International Day of Cooperatives (CoopsDay), 1st Saturday of July. The celebration aims to showcase co-operatives’ role in building ‘inclusive, resilient, and sustainable communities’, coopsday.coop
- Jul 18, 2026 (Sat) — Mandela Day, global celebration 18 July annually, to honour the life and legacy of Nelson Mandela. A call to action for individuals, communities, and organisations to take time to reflect on Mandela's values and principles and to make a positive impact in their own communities, mandeladay.com
2021-2030, UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, International community action events
Communities online
[edit | edit source]- eastmalling.net, independent project providing information and news for residents and visitors of East Malling
Local concerns
[edit | edit source]Overdevelopment
In common with many areas across the the South East, the constant threat of overdevelopment or inappropriate development, for example locking us into yet more car dependency, pollution and carbon emissions, loss of green space, lack of genuinely affordable housing and imbalances against community interests in the current top down planning system is a concern for many people locally.
14% of Tonbridge and Malling is 'Built on', compared to 6% nationally, Nov 9, 2017...bbc.co.uk. Because of recent and planned new housing the disparity is likely to be growing, with even more of a disparity for some parts of the Borough. It wold be interesting to know what the figure is for Malling and how this has increased over recent years...
Housing news
- A Land Use Framework for England: will it help join up land use decisions?, cpre.org.uk (Apr 01, 2026)
- Quarter of England at risk of water shortages (Mar 28, 2026) — less water in the system than planners are currently preparing for will have a knock-on effect on new housing developments
- 'Not enough water supply' for planned housing, BBC News (Mar 12, 2026) — There is "insufficient" water supply for the number of houses planned in a Kent borough, South East Water has claimed.
- One in nine new homes in England built between 2022 and 2024 were constructed in areas that could now be at risk of flooding, according to new data., theguardian.com (Feb 18, 2026) — between 2013 and 2022, one in 13 new homes were in potential flooding zones.
- Salt Cross: Carbon neutral village plans approved by government, BBC News (Feb 04, 2026)
- Europe needs affordable, low‑carbon homes – here’s how Barcelona is reimagining its housing system, theconversation.com (Apr 08, 2026)
- New York Cooks Up a Plan to Boost Energy Efficiency in Public Housing, insideclimatenews.org (Mar 16, 2026)
- Community land trusts: Building a different kind of wealth, thenews.coop (Feb 03, 2026) — How the model is protecting US neighbourhoods from property speculation and gentrification
- 100 US cities have now abolished parking mandates, freeing up space for housing, theprogressplaybook.com (Nov 19, 2025)
- Could Zurich’s housing cooperatives be the solution to the rest of Europe’s housing crisis?, theguardian.com (Oct 23, 2025)
New
- Grey belt tracker, from the Community Planning Alliance: docs.google.com (form only, map not found?)
- Via this Land Cover Explorer map, you can see changes in land use / land cover, for example the built up area, 2017-2023: livingatlas.arcgis.com, added 14:41, 8 September 2024 (UTC)
Campaigns
- Friends of Offham Road, "Committed to supporting sustainable development and protecting green spaces around West Malling". Friends of Offham Road on facebook.comadded 17:46, 7 December 2025 (UTC)
- Kent quarry extension is one of the biggest threats of the 21st century. Hermitage Quarry expansion plans: If approved, the loss could even surpass ancient woodland losses from the Lower Thames Crossing and HS2 schemes combined, woodlandtrust.org.uk, added 14:04, 9 August 2023 (UTC)
- Broadwater Action Group, based in East and West Malling,...Press release, broadwateractiongroup.co.uk, added 12:35, 27 August 2021 (UTC)
- Protect West Malling, public group on facebook
- Ryarsh Protection Group, an action group working alongside Ryarsh Parish Council. "Our priority currently (2018) is to object to the proposed 'West Malling Sandpit' which is a large sand quarry located in Ryarsh."
see also: Towards a more democratic and climate friendly way of meeting housing need across England
About Malling
[edit | edit source]West Malling is an historic mediaeval market town based in West Kent. Malling, West Malling and hinterland consists of the parishes of Addington; Birling; East Malling; Kings Hill; Larkfield; Leybourne; Mereworth; Offham; Ryarsh; and Trottiscliffe.
The area is unusual in that East Malling, Larkfield and Kings Hill are substantial communities with their own shops and facilities – however they provide the main commercial and industrial estates, leaving West Malling as a traditional market town offering retail shops, services and hospitality to the surrounding area. There are more than 500 businesses in the Malling area.
The parishes are within the Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council (offices at Kings Hill). The town is actually closer to Maidstone, County Town of Kent, than to Tonbridge; however both are substantial centres accessible to West Malling car drivers, but Tonbridge much less so for car-free households...MAP Action plan 2009-2011, Introduction (link no longer available).
West Malling archive
[edit | edit source]Past events
- Nov 5 - 27, 2021, Kings Hill and West Malling Eco Hub's Pledge tree. Every small change we make has a ripple effect influencing and inspiring our friends, families, colleagues and shops and businesses.
- Our Eco Hub is creating a pledge tree in West Malling Library. We hope to get lots of schools, businesses and groups involved to make a pledge to take one step greener and be part of a bigger community movement.
- Make your leaf or leaves from some waste paper or card (preferably in autumn colours!) Write your pledge on it and post the leaf into the library during November.
- We will add the pledges to the tree and share how the tree is growing on our Facebook page @KingsHillandWestMallingEcoHub. Kings Hill and West Malling Eco Hub on facebook.com
See also
[edit | edit source]- Towards a more democratic and climate friendly way of meeting housing need across England, Housing UK news
- Housing, Housing news
Near you
[edit | edit source]News
- Rights of Nature movement grows, with the Wye and Ouse subject to new protection charters, wickedleeks.riverford.co.uk (Jun 18, 2026) — Nature sits at the heart of several new sets of rights and charters; it’s even headlining a festival this summer. Is the way that we view and value Nature within our political and cultural frameworks at a turning point? asks Hannah Marsh
- Maidstone Borough Council has become the first council in the UK to formally adopt a Rights of Nature framework, news.maidstone.gov.uk (Apr 30, 2026)
- Council offering free use of leisure centre hall, BBC News (Jan 04, 2026)
- 'Not enough water supply' for planned housing, BBC News (Mar 12, 2026) — There is "insufficient" water supply for the number of houses planned in a Kent borough, South East Water has claimed.
- Ambitious plans to redevelop town centre unveiled, BBC News (Jul 06, 2025)
- Town to get new 'central' leisure hub, BBC News (Feb 02, 2025)
- White storks: why introducing non‑native species in rewilding projects can be a good idea, theconversation.com (Jun 05, 2026)
- Record-breaking heat and dry spring leave parts of England without water, reuters.com (May 29, 2026)
- Quarter of England at risk of water shortages (Mar 28, 2026) — less water in the system than planners are currently preparing for will have a knock-on effect on new housing developments
Gravesham - Maidstone - Medway - Sevenoaks - Tonbridge - Kent
| Authors | Phil Green |
|---|---|
| License | CC-BY-SA-3.0 |
| Cite as | Philralph (2014–2026). "Community action/Malling". Appropedia. Retrieved June 24, 2026. |