Kent faces housing crisis as population growth outpaces new builds, leading to affordability and overcrowding issues.
Houses are super expensive now, costing eight times the average salary to buy a home. Affordable housing is seriously lacking, too. A report explained all this to the Kent Health Board, presented by Dr. Anjan Ghosh last month.
Kent’s population grew seven percent in ten years and eighteen percent over twenty. Ashford, Dartford, and Maidstone grew rapidly. Housing only increased nine percent in ten years, so demand is far higher than supply.
Housing prices rose fifteen to thirty percent. Dover is the most affordable area, but it’s still pricey. Houses there cost eight times the average income, while Sevenoaks is even worse, with homes costing fourteen times the average salary.
Almost twenty percent of people rent privately, around 145,566 households. Rent is too high for people on housing benefits. This leads to more folks becoming homeless in Kent.
Sadly, many children are homeless, with over 3,500 kids living in temporary housing. The housing is often insecure and inadequate. Families end up far from schools, which affects kids’ behavior and education.
Over 26,000 Kent households live in crowded homes, mostly rented spaces. Ten percent of homes in the Southeast are considered “non-decent.” These homes might be unsafe or lack modern facilities.
Many non-decent homes cause fuel poverty. Kent’s older population is also growing. More people need homes adapted for disabilities. This issue needs attention soon.
Kent is a very white county at 83 percent, ten percent higher than other counties. English is the main language spoken, at nearly 90 percent. Polish and Romanian are also spoken there, though.
Nearly half the residents are Christian. Over 40 percent don’t identify with any faith. Some are Muslim and Hindu, too. People in Kent speak almost one hundred languages total, with about 37 languages spoken by 500 people.
A woman in Kent lives about 83.3 years, a bit higher than England’s average, while a man’s life expectancy is 79.3 years. Coastal areas have the lowest life expectancy and are also the most deprived.
Thanet and Folkestone have lower life expectancies, while Sevenoaks and Ashford have the highest. HIV rates are increasing in Kent, too. Still, most of Kent is not a “high prevalence” area.
Gravesham and Thanet are considered high prevalence areas, with over two people with HIV per 1,000. The Health Board accepted the report and agreed to some actions based on its findings.