I travelled to meet Michael Dowie with a few preconceptions. His YouTube videos present him as a serious man, thoughtful, disciplined and not given to smiles or laughter. I wondered whether that seriousness would carry over into everyday conversation. It did, to a...

Ireland’s mental health system is struggling under a level of need it can no longer meet. Despite years of public discussion about the importance of mental health, services remain underfunded, overstretched and, in many cases, unsafe. This ongoing underinvestment...

John O’Connor, a proud Irish Traveller, purchased six acres of land at Ayletts Farm, known as Green Acres, in Halstead, near Braintree, Essex. He and his family have made it their home since April 2025. John was born in England and traces his ancestral roots back to...

The current synagogue in Medway opened in 1870. It was built by Simon Magnus in memory of his son. Magnus was part of a well-established Jewish family in Kent and played a significant role in supporting the local Jewish community. His contribution to the synagogue...

Abdellah was born in Rabat, Morocco, in 1973, the second youngest of nine children. His parents were poor, relying on his father’s modest wage from the local library to support the entire family. Their home was small and overcrowded—he shared a bedroom with his...

An incredibly sad tragedy occurred in February 2025 when Joe’s younger brother Adam

Jordan Harris (32) was born on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent to his English mother and Chinese father. His parents split up when Jordan was four and his mother became a single parent for eight years until she met his stepfather Ian, who has been a father figure ever...

The knife is the weapon: the person behind it is where it starts. Young offending, drugs, knives and gangs have existed for a long time; they are not something new. Thousands of young people every year who are held back by poverty, abuse, addiction and mental health...

Featured image:  Elder Jackson Thacker on Gravesend High Street Traditional Christian Churches – Catholic, Anglican and Orthodox – still command the largest allegiance amongst Christians worldwide, but they don’t command exclusive supremacy of those who follow Jesus....

Adolescence Painful, greasy, smelly, hormonal, angry are just a few of the names attributed to adolescents.  On one hand, some professionals, including social workers, forget the uphill struggles and peer pressures associated with teenager years. Some think they were...