Maidstone's Flower Pot is top CAMRA pub in Kent

Congratulations to the Flower Pot (just round the corner from me with superb beer and great music) for being the best CAMRA pub in Kent and in the top 16 in the country. I feel a beer coming on...

From CAMRA / Good Beer Guide:

Flower Pot, 98 Sandling Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 2RJ (Page 221, Good Beer Guide 2011) 

Filling a gap in Maidstone's portfolio, this genuine street-corner free house has much to offer real ale enthusiasts. The landlord is an evangelist for real ale and offers a diverse range of four guest ales to complement the two regular beers. The pub's top bar has panelling reputed to be from HMS Victory. Home-cooked pub food is available 12-6pm daily. Frequent live music and jam nights feature, as well as occasional beer festivals. A short walk from the railway station.

80p a drink as violence escalates

The front page of the Kent Messenger tells how violence has escalated in Maidstone since the introduction of cheap alcohol promotions at some of the nightclubs.

Maidstone has around 14,000 clubbers at the weekend (compared to its 95,000 population), and while the level of trouble has been relatively low in the past it seems that cheap alcohol is fueling problems. I suspect there is also a more general feeling of anxiety which is a factor, with the economic and housing squeeze, which is exacerbating both the mood and the willingness to drink more.

We need to find answers to these issues and building communities and a strong localised economy are key. Maidstone suffers with its sense of community as a commuter town, bringing work closer to home helps build that sense of identity and build a shared sense of responsibility. Drowning our sorrows is not the answer.