Call for London areas to stop moving families here
Kent MPs are calling on the government to take steps to curb London councils from moving residents to the county to save money.
In a joint letter led by Maidstone and the Weald MP Helen Grant to the housing minister Gavin Barwell, MPs warn there are signs the practice of councils sending families to Kent has the potential to cause ‘significant issues’ notably the pressure on public services such as the NHS and schools.
The letter states: “We appreciate London boroughs are under pressure with many having very significant levels of homelessness combined with high local property costs. There is however a resource disparity between London boroughs and the authorities receiving placements.”
It cites two London boroughs leasing 40 flats in a newly converted office block in Pudding Lane, Maidstone for their residents and the impact of 250 families from Redbridge moved ‘en masse’ in homes in Howe Barracks on former Ministry of Defence land in Canterbury.
Redbridge council bought the site that Canterbury City Council had wanted for its own residents.
MPs say it is a new phenomenon and, in the case of Canter- bury, meant 100 school places had to be found with just two weeks’ notice.
The government should take steps that would give London boroughs less incentive to place families out of their area, the MPs say.
One proposal is that Kent receives a share of the housing allowance paid to London councils “to mitigate the costs of the wrap-around services Kent has to provide”.
The minister is told that it should be compulsory for placing councils to notify in advance where they are putting families. MPs say councils should also have to to provide information about whether families have social care issues, such as domestic abuse.
The letter has been signed by 12 other county MPs, including Tonbridge and Malling’s Tom Tugendhat, Aylesford’s Tracey Crouch and Mid Kent’s Helen Whately.
Speaking last year, KCC leader Paul Carter said he was concerned by the growing evidence that councils were using Kent to save money.