There is not a great deal difference between Ashford and many other towns in the UK.Like others we have our Malls with household name stores.Debenhams,M&S,Bhs to name a few and on the other side of the Ashford-Hastings rail line from our flat in Newtown there is the McArthur Glen outlet,a large horse collar shaped designer village noticable from miles away with its white waved designed roof.

Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. It is the administrative town of the Boroughof Gravesham. It still retains today a strong link with the river. The opening of the Eurostar railway station at Ebbsfleet, the arrival of the High Speed service at Gravesend station itself and the fact that it lies within the Thames Gateway, add to the town's importance.