From the https://www.kentonline.co.uk By David Gazet, 27 March 2017.

Kayleigh Caesar, who was found dead at the Dragoon pub in Maidstone, had received abuse on Facebook.

A young care nurse who took her life on Christmas Eve had been receiving threatening Facebook messages, an inquest heard.

The hearing into Kayleigh Caesar’s death was told how the 28-year-old was found hanged in her room at the "Dragoon" pub in Sandling Road, Maidstone.

Ms Caesar had mental health problems and had also suffered two recent bereavements. In 2012 she lost her baby Oliver and last year a close family friend, Paul Robinson.

Kayleigh Caesar was found dead on Christmas Eve.

The court heard how in August last year Mr Robinson was assaulted in the "Dragoon" and died two months later. No one was prosecuted in connection to the incident.

Giving evidence DS Daniel Barker said Ms Caesar had helped police with their investigation and she told officers she had been receiving malicious messages from people connected to the case which she found upsetting.

Though she did not consider her life was at risk, she was told to keep her phone on her and that CCTV should be improved at the pub.

There were no signs of third party involvement and notes were found in her room.

A post-mortem examination found the cause of death was suspension and tests revealed she had been drinking and had taken cocaine on the day of her death.

The coroner was told how Ms Caesar struggled with depression and drink and had previously attempted to take her own life.

Giving a verdict of suicide, assistant coroner Katrina Hepburn said she was satisfied Ms Caesar intended to cause her death.

Ms Caesar’s mum, Clare Parslow, said: “We miss Kayleigh every day of our lives and it is not any easier but in life you have to go on no matter what.

“It is unbelievable how many people truly loved that girl and how many hearts are broken because she couldn’t carry on.”

If you would like confidential support on an emotional issue, call Samaritans free on 116 123.

From the https://www.kentonline.co.uk  By Alan Smith, 2 January 2023.

Clare rings time at Maidstone's Dragoon pub.

A popular pub landlady is preparing to draw her last pint and retire to spend more time with her family.

Clare Parslow, 63, has been the licensee at The Dragoon pub in Maidstone, since 2016.

Clare Parslow, last landlady of The Dragoon pub in Sandling Road, Maidstone.

Her last day will be January 19, which will be seven years to the day since she took over the watering hole in Sandling Road.

She said: "We're going to have a big party, with karaoke and lots of fun."

Mrs Parslow said that taking on a pub had been a life-long dream, and taking over The Dragoon had been particularly significant to her.

She said: "I used to work as a cleaner, and then I was a barmaid for 20 years. I used to clean The Dragoon, and it was here that I was given my first barmaid's job by the then landlords, John and Loretta Noakes. So you could say that The Dragoon was my introduction to the trade."

She said that although she had loved her time at the Dragoon, her stay had also been tinged with sadness.

Her daughter, Kayleigh Caesar, took her own life in her bedroom at the pub back in 2016. She was only 28.

Mrs Parslow said: "Just recently, a number of our regular customers have also passed away.

"It's made me reassess my life a bit. My husband's 10 years older than me and I think it's time to spend more time at home."

By home, she means their house in Calder Road, Maidstone.

But she said: "I will miss the customers though, especially the regulars like Ken Ross, who literally comes in every day!"

Geoffrey and Clare Parslow on the day they took over The Dragoon in 2016.

Mrs Parslow, who is of Hungarian heritage, said she would always remember the parties at the pub.

She said: "We had a fantastic one on my 60th birthday, when my sister came over from South Africa to join us and all my nieces and nephews were here."

But she said now was probably the time to quit the industry.

She said: "To be honest, business has been very, very dead.

"We've never recovered our trade since Covid. Sometimes Ken is the only customer in here."

Most of Mrs Parslow' seven children have also worked in the pub at some time, as has one of her grandsons, though her husband Geoffrey kept his own job as an architect.

The pub was also given a very favourable write-up by KentOnline's Secret Drinker who praised its Tardis-size interior and friendly welcome.

Mrs Parslow said retirement would give her more time to return to her hobbies of running and swimming and also more time to spend with one of her daughters, Casey, who has learning difficulties and lives with her.

Sadly, when the Dragoon's regulars attend her farewell party, they may also be saying farewell to the pub.

George Barnes, property director of the Shepherd Neame brewery which owns the place, said: "We can confirm that The Dragoon in Maidstone is in the process of being sold, as it no longer fits our business needs. The sale is part of an ongoing evaluation of our property portfolio to ensure that we target our resources effectively."

The buyer is Jim Mills, who two years ago bought the "Dog and Gun" pub in Boxley Road, Maidstone, after it closed.

He gained planning permission to convert it and it has since been turned into eight homes.

A pair of bungalows are being built in what was the pub garden.

From https://www.kentlive.news By Mary Harris, 16 September 2025.

Former Kent pub to be converted into flats after developer wins at second appeal.

It was second time lucky for the owner to win permission to convert the former pub.

The now boarded up pub in Kent - an appeal has been won to convert it into flats (Image: Google Maps)

A developer has won the right at appeal to convert a former pub in Kent into four flats. It will mark the end of a long era of the large, traditional, back street 'locals pub with its roots in the late 1900s, as empty The Dragoon Pub in Maidstone becomes a one two-bedroom flat, and three one-bedroom flats.

Last orders had been called and that last pint of Shepherd Neame's Master Brew pulled more than two years ago at The Dragoon in Sandling Road, close to the ground of the town's football team.

It's been targeted by vandals and daubed with graffiti, with one resident describing it as an "absolute eyesore".

It will be the final closing of a historical chapter: the pub survived a bomb from the Germans in 1940, which demolished the rear. It was eventually rebuilt, and bought by Shepherd Neame 16 years later.

But it seemed it couldn't survive the Covid-19 pandemic, according to its last landlady, said appeal documents.

There was also competition with four pubs in the "immediate vicinity", and 20 pubs in or near the town centre, along with other factors.

A later image showing the graffiti on The Dragoon building in Maidstone - an appeal has been won to convert it into flats (Image: Google Maps)

The pub, on the corner of Hope Street, had Maidstone's "only bar billiards table", said the brewery proudly in 2016, although a visitor said in 2020 it was no longer there.

After seven years at the helm, landlady Clare Parslow retired in January 2023, and the pub was sold at auction, with James Mills of CKE Homes Ltd the "only bidder, said the planning inspector's appeal decision.

In the scant reviews online, it's a mixed bag, with one saying on Google Reviews it was "an interesting place. Interesting like ‘This Is England’ is interesting. Proper ‘local’ - and by that I mean that people called Sebastian or those with a penchant for chinos may feel out of place here. Quite rough around the edges but gets two stars for authenticity".

Some are positive, but on the only review on Tripadivsor, someone bemoans the jukebox playing "non-stop rap/grime", saying "if the Dragoon wants to increase trade, Shepherd Neame out to think about putting the jukebox on the skip".

Between 2018 and 2023, the pub's average beer barrelage was "below the point of viability", said the planning inspector at the appeal, reading the provided viability study from the applicant, which had not been provided at an earlier failed appeal.

The study also said the pub was "wet only", which means it only serves drink, and not food, and there was insufficient space for diners or a commercial kitchen, and there was no beer garden or parking for punters.

The application from CKE Homes Ltd in Maidstone to convert the pub was rejected by Maidstone Borough Council. As one of its reason for refusal, the council said without audited financial reports and evidence of proper marketing, there was a failure to demonstrate its use a pub was "not now viable and is unlikely to become commercially viable".

The council said: "...and so it has not been possible to determine whether or not there is no local demand for such a local community facility in this location."

How it used to look - The Dragoon pub in Maidstone which shut in January 2023 (Image: Google Maps)

But a viability study was provided for the second appeal, after the first was rejected, and that convinced the planning inspector to allow it.

They said: "The rental valuation exercise is based on the pub’s final trading situation, operating the property as a tenancy. The analysis concludes the profit level would be equivalent to 6 per cent of turnover. At this low profit level, the study indicates the business would be vulnerable to unexpected adverse impacts, provide low rental income, and minimal return on capital with a lack of incentive for investment."

The plans include a first floor extension and changes to the windows, and removal of a chimney. The inspector said concerns were raised by some residents the proposed development would see a rise in demand for on-street parking. But the inspector said parking did not need to be provided for a development of this type on the edge of a town centre location, and the council could control the number of parked vehicles through its residential permit scheme.

One Sandling Road resident said: "I have concerns about this planning application. Car parking in this area is at best a nightmare, especially since the mothballing of the carpark near the "Flower Pot" public house. The application states that the existing 4 car parking spaces will be removed and not replaced. This puts even more pressure on the local area with potentially 10 residents moving in. If these parking spaces were to be retained, I would actually support the development as the site is an absolute eyesore as it is right now."