Wednesday September 6 | 2017
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Company forced to eat its words over job advert
INSIDE
Top of the poppies… Tonbridge hits the high notes
SAVE THE CHILDREN Tree of Hope offers chance to fund treatment Pages 10-11
Photos: Kerry Barton/Studio 23
A TONBRIDGE company has been accused of discrimination for including the message ‘No vegans’ in a job advertisement. The decision was said to be a publicity stunt but it backfired as the firm faced a storm of criticism on social media. Advertainment Media, based at Riverside Business Centre in River Lawn, put up the offer of a video editing role on August 29.
CHOOSING A SCHOOL Your free invaluable 20-page education pull-out Page 21
TALENT ON SHOW: (L-R) Ryan Weeks, the 17th Scout and Guide Band and Kiah Spurle were among a variety of musical acts who performed at the Busking Beyond the Grounds event on River Walk on Saturday to raise money for the Poppy Appeal. See page 2
It was posted on a number of sites including Universal Jobsearch and Indeed. The Equality Act 2010 states that it is illegal to discriminate against people based on what they choose to eat. The Vegan Society were alerted to the reference on Facebook and contacted the company to inform them that it was in breach of the Equality Act. The organisation was told that the line was included in a bid to generate interest in the vacancy. The posting was subsequently taken down. Initially, a comment was added to the advert two days later which read: “I did earlier have written on this job board: No Vegans ... but was intended to generate a bit of attention to increase number of applicants – but just to be clear I don’t care what you do or don’t eat.”
Campaigners can save River Lawn by buying it By Andy Tong
andy@timesoftonbridge.co.uk OPPONENTS of the sale of River Lawn to property developers are cautiously optimistic after they succeeded in having the site nominated as an Asset of Community Value – but they admit that the move is a ‘last resort’. The site’s new status means that campaigners have an option to buy the public space if Tonbridge & Malling Borough Council decides to sell. However, even if the group does manage to raise the necessary funds, the Council
does not have to give them preferential treatment over any private company who also decides to bid for the land. The Barden Residents’ Association (BRA) put in the application two months ago and the council has accepted it.
Unusual The next step is that the council’s sixperson Cabinet will vote on October 11 to decide if they will sell the site to private developers. Controversially, the decision will not be made by Full Council – though the leadership insists that its members’ views will be
taken into account by Cabinet, along with those of the general public. The council’s constitution is unusual in that the local authority does not have to put votes of such magnitude to all of its councillors. If the sale goes ahead, campaigners will have seven and a half months in which to raise the required money, during which time River Lawn cannot be sold. Mark Hood of the Barden Residents’ Association said: “Basically this is a last resort measure, having to do this. We didn’t want it to get this far.”
Continued on page 2
TJS OFF TO A FLYER
Promoted Tonbridge Juddians notch half-century Page 94
FIRE ON THE WATER
Dragon Boat Race provides climax to top weekend Page 2