Kent Life

Sandling is a hamlet to the north of the town of Maidstone, Kent, England, at the foot of the North Downs. It falls within the parish of Boxley. Notable buildings in the hamlet include the remains of the twelfth century Boxley Abbey, the Hospitium or Boxley Abbey Barn, the fifteenth century gatehouse chapel of St Andrew's, the headquarters of the Kent Wildlife Trust at Tyland Barn, and Kent Life open-air museum. Sandling's sign was erected to mark Boxley Parish Council’s centenary (1895-1995) and is based on ideas submitted by Sandling County Primary School pupils in 1993. It depicts Boarley Oast, the North Downs, the River Medway and Tyland Barn. Several Stone Age sites border the hamlet, including Kit's Coty House, Little Kit's Coty House, Smythe's Megalith, the Coffin Stone and the White Horse Stone. The fields in and around Sandling are primarily used for viticulture. Winemakers Chapel Down tend 156 acres of vines at Boarley Farm.

The Medway Valley Walk follows the River Medway from Rochester to Tonbridge. Above Allington, it follows the bank of the Medway Navigation. It starts on the Saxon Shore Way at Rochester. The North Downs Way crosses the Medway Valley Walk at the eastern end of the Medway Viaduct or motorway bridge. The Greensand Way crosses the walk at Yalding. At West Peckham, it is joined by the Wealdway which continues through to Tonbridge, thus linking with the Eden Valley Walk. Th entire walk is 44.8 km The Maidstone Millennium River Park is a 10 kilometre (6 mi) stretch from Teston Country Park to the Museum of Kent Life at Sandling. It follows the walk. The park was built between 1998 and 2001; it has transformed 18 acres (7.3 ha) of wasteland and led to the construction of three new footbridges over the river all accessible from the walk. A major part of the park is Whatman Park in the centre of Maidstone.

Allington Castle is a stone castle in Allington, Kent, just north of Maidstone, in England. The first castle on the site was an unauthorised fortification, built during "The Anarchy" (1135–1153) and torn down later in the century when royal control was reasserted. It was replaced by a manor house, which was fortified with royal permission in the 13th century. Various alterations and expansions were made by successive owners over the following two centuries. The property was developed into a fortified compound with six towers at irregular intervals along the curtain wall and domestic buildings in the interior, including one of the first long galleries built in England. In 1554 it was seized by the Crown in the course of dispossessing its owner, Sir Thomas Wyatt the Younger, after the failure of his rebellion against Queen Mary. The castle entered a state of decay that was accelerated by fires, neglect and vandalism, until it was largely ruined by the start of the 20th century. It was saved and restored by the efforts of Sir Martin Conway and his wife during the first half of the century. After nearly 50 years of occupation by a community of Carmelite friars and nuns, it returned to being a private residence in 1999 and is currently the home of Sir Robert Worcester, the founder of the MORI polling company. It is a grade I listed building and is used as a wedding venue, though there is no public access other than occasional tours involving trips from Maidstone town centre on the Kentish Lady river boat.

Allington is an almost entirely modern village situated alongside the sides of the A20 road west of Maidstone in Kent. It is part of the built-up area of Maidstone.

Abbey Gate is a hamlet in the borough of Maidstone in Kent, England.

Allington Quarry is a 0.8-hectare (2.0-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Maidstone in Kent. It is a Geological Conservation Review site.This Pleistocene site has an extensive section through gulls (cracks in the rock) which are filled with loess. These were probably produced by seasonal freezing and thawing during the last ice age.The site is private land with no public access.

Tyland Barn, in Sandling, north of Maidstone, Kent, is the headquarters of the Kent Wildlife Trust.It has a nature park which is designed to show the variety of habitats in the county, such as a pond, grassland, a chalk bank, a shingle beach, scrub and hedges.

Forstal is a settlement in Aylesford parish in Kent, England.

Ringlestone is a suburb and housing estate in the town of Maidstone, Kent, England. It is on the eastern side of the River Medway, near Allington, 1.3 miles (2.1 km) from Maidstone town centre. The area was originally part of the estate surrounding Park House, owned by Edmund Law Lushington, professor of Greek and later Lord Rector of the University of Glasgow. His friend and brother-in-law, Lord Tennyson was a frequent visitor, and it is believed Tennyson's poems The Brook and The Princess were inspired by his visits.The house was acquired in 1936 to the military to form Invicta Park Barracks, while some of the land was used to develop houses, which forms the eastern part of the estate today.The estate has two small shops and an Esso petrol station. There are plans to move St Faith's Church, based near Maidstone East station in the town centre to Ringlestone, in a new building on the site of the existing community centre.

The Allington Quarry Waste Management Facility is an integrated waste management centre in Allington, Kent. It is the site of the Allington Energy from Waste (EfW) Incinerator. The incinerator is owned by FCC Environment as Kent Enviropower. The facility, which has involved an investment of over £150 Million, is able to process 500,000 tonnes per annum of waste and has the ability to produce 40MW of power. The facility takes non-hazardous waste from households and businesses in Kent and the surrounding area for recycling and energy recovery. Materials separated by householders are sorted and sent for recycling, with the remainder being used to generate electricity to power the facility and for the local supply network. Built in a former ragstone quarry, the site includes one 80 metres (260 ft) high chimney, and covers an area of 84 acres (34 ha), of which 67 acres (27 ha) will eventually become parkland, and permanently employs around 100 people.Under a 25-year contract with Kent County Council, Over 325,000 tonnes of municipal waste, from Maidstone, Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge and Malling, Dartford, Gravesham and Swale councils will be processed each year. The centre is a major waste facility and will contribute to Kent meeting its LATS obligations for the diversion of waste from landfill. The incinerator employs fluidized bed incineration technology and has been in commercial operation since December 2008.

National Cycle Route 17 is part of the United Kingdom's National Cycle Network. It presently runs southwards from Rochester, via Maidstone to Ashford where it links with National Cycle Route 18. The route is open and is signed between Rochester and Maidstone, with the rest due for development. It leads from Rochester, via mainly minor roads, towards Blue Bell Hill, where it meets the North Downs Way (long distance footpath), both routes follow the Pilgrim's Way to Detling. There is also a spur line down to the county town of Maidstone. The Pilgrim's Cycle Trail carries on towards Hollingbourne, after which it becomes traffic free towards (above Harrietsham, then via minor roads to Charing. It then heads to Westwell, Kent, and then via traffic-free route to Ashford, via Kennington, Kent. In Ashford, it meets National Route 18 heading to the town centre, the route then heads out of Ashford via Sevington. In future, it will continue to the south coast, through Bonnington and then (near Newchurch, Kent), it will link with National Cycle Route 2 between Folkestone and Lydd. Heading west, it will follow the approximate line of the North Downs Way National Trail entering Surrey.

The Maplesden Noakes School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in Maidstone, Kent, England. Since September 2005, the school has had a planned admission number of 180. The school's intake is regularly oversubscribed and it has exactly 1082 students on roll of which 207 are currently in the sixth form (as of February 2014). The school is situated in a residential area not far from the town's centre. It occupies a 30-acre (120,000 m2) site and shares its grounds with Maidstone Grammar School for Girls.