A FRESH blow has been dealt to Maidstone and Malling Neighbourhood Watch after its chairman and eight other committee members resigned.

Members believe the group may be on the verge of collapse as only three senior members remain.

Chairman David Harding resigned at an extraordinary meeting of the committee. Among the other high-profile losses was Gerry Richards, the Malling area co-ordinator who almost single-handedly ran neighbourhood watch from a 24-hour control room at his home at East Malling.

A crisis meeting was held last month when the previous chairman, secretary and treasurer resigned. And the police's Neighbourhood Watch Liaison Officer, Andy Parkinson, resigned two weeks ago to take up a post at Kent County Council.

Janet Jennings, vice chairman of the Lenham Neighbourhood Watch scheme, believes many areas will have "good neighbour schemes", not Neighbourhood Watches, in future.

She has already announced that she intends to resign later this year to set up an independent scheme in Lenham, called Contact.

She said: "This spells the end of it. I cannot see how the association can get its house in order in time for its annual general meeting in November.

"Individual schemes want to go their own way. I think the essential meaning of neighbourhood watch has been lost. It is about looking after your neighbour and your community, and I think it will return to that."