Tonbridge & district · Local news you can trust
Halloween near Tonbridge: Hever's trail runs 17 October to 1 November, Penshurst's 24 October to 1 November, Leybourne Lakes after dark on 24 October for £6.
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Christmas
Tonbridge Christmas Market 2026: Three Castle Weekends
Tonbridge Christmas Fest runs three weekends at the castle from 27 November to 13 December 2026, free to enter. Hours, food, 18+ nights and the other fairs.
Tonbridge Castle
Tonbridge Castle This Winter: Hours, Prices and Christmas
Tonbridge Castle opens every day through winter, 9am to 5pm on weekdays. Gatehouse tickets £10.90, family £33.30, and the Christmas Fest from 27 November.
Christmas
Father Christmas in Tonbridge 2026: Where to Meet Him
Meet Father Christmas at Tonbridge Castle on 10 December for £5 a child, see him with two reindeer at the Rotary festival on 29 November, or post a letter free.
Tonbridge
Tonbridge Riverside Path Lights: Work Starts in November
Lights go up on the dark riverside path from Town Lock to Vale Road and Cannon Lane from November, a year late. The council hopes to finish by Christmas.
Council
Tonbridge Council This Week: Angel Centre's £19.4m Bill
The auditor says councillors lack a funding plan for the £19.4m Angel Centre rebuild. Audit Committee accepted all three fixes on 28 September; Cabinet takes it on 6 October.
Travel
Tonbridge Trains: No Wadhurst Line for Nine Days From 24 Oct
No trains between Tonbridge and Wadhurst from 24 October to 1 November, over half-term. Priory Road also shuts at the rail bridge on the same nine days.
News
Bishop Chavasse Tonbridge: Six Open Events from 7 October
Six Early Years open events start on 7 October, one on a Saturday. The Tonbridge school has 60 Reception places and Kent applications close on 15 January.
Planning
East Malling 35 Homes: Planning Vote Now Thursday 24 Sept
Paris Farm's 35 homes and eight self-build plots at West Malling go to councillors on Thursday 24 September, after the committee ran out of time on 16 September.
Community
Free Music Lessons in Tonbridge: Sunday 11 October, 12-4pm
MusicStation on Bank Street gives free lessons on six instruments, noon to 4pm on Sunday 11 October. Book ahead: it is the only Kent venue on the list.
Jobs
Tonbridge and Malling Claimant Count Hits 2,095 in August
The borough's highest monthly total in at least two years. Every extra claimant since 2024 is under 25 or over 50, and the 25 to 49 band has shrunk.
Housing
Tonbridge and Malling House Prices Reach £407,880 in July
The average home gained £5,607 in a year, but a flat lost £3,434. Semis rose fastest, and the borough is still £13,107 below its December 2022 peak.
Planning
Tonbridge Local Plan Consultation: Comment by 25 October
Comment on 20,106 new homes until 11.59pm on 25 October. The council's leader is asking the minister to drop it: the water firm forecasts 317 homes a year.
Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells are two different towns in two different council areas, and confusing them is the quickest way to look up the wrong bin day. This site is for Tonbridge: the town on the Medway with the castle and the station, along with Hildenborough, Hadlow and East Peckham nearby.
It is also for the other half of the borough, which faces the M20 rather than Tonbridge. West Malling, East Malling, Kings Hill, Larkfield, Leybourne, Ditton, Snodland, Aylesford, Borough Green and Wrotham share a council with Tonbridge, and the council itself sits at Kings Hill. We read what Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council publishes and report what is in it, with the source linked every time.
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