Maidstone Borough Council’s Cabinet has rejected a proposal put forward by Conservative Cllr Stan Forecast to strengthen powers on catapults, in a decision that will be seen as a setback for residents and wildlife protection.
At the Housing and Community Cohesion Policy Advisory Committee on 8 July 2026, councillors backed stronger action to tackle the misuse of catapults in Maidstone. Cllr Stan Forecast, who introduced the report, said reports of catapult misuse were becoming an increasing concern across the borough and that, while a Public Spaces Protection Order would not be a “silver bullet”, it would provide an important additional enforcement tool, support the work already being undertaken with Kent Police, and send a clear message that dangerous behaviour would not be tolerated.
Cllr Ron Burke also supported the recommendation, arguing that local authorities should not wait for national legislation before acting to improve public safety. He warned that increasingly powerful catapults posed a growing risk to both wildlife and the public, and said the council should continue pressing Government for tougher national laws while using the powers already available locally.
Despite that support at committee stage, Cabinet chose not to progress the measure, leaving the council reliant on existing community and policing approaches. This will be hard to defend to residents who have raised repeated concerns about anti-social behaviour and harm to wildlife, particularly where a clearer local enforcement tool was available.
Cabinet members pointed to pressure on police resources and argued that current partnership work remains the better route. However, the decision will inevitably prompt questions about whether those measures are enough, particularly when the problem is being reported as persistent and growing.
There is now a clear need to send a stronger message that catapult use against people and wildlife must not be tolerated, and the Cabinet should have backed this measure. Helen Whately MP, Helen Grant MP, Kent Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Scott, Cllr Russell, and Cllr Parfitt have all been campaigning for stronger action for some time.
For a Green-led council, refusing even to advance a practical wildlife protection measure will sit uneasily with the environmental language it often uses. By rejecting the proposal, the Cabinet has weakened the case for action and left residents with no clearer route to stronger legislation.
Cllr Stan Forecast said he was shocked and disappointed by the outcome and would continue to raise the issue and do what is right for his residents.
The recommendation not to proceed was approved without opposition, with one abstention.
