About Kent
KENT IS THE LARGEST COUNTY IN ENGLAND.
This scale gives us resilience and a strong voice at the national level
Kent is large and diverse
Kent is the largest county in England. This scale gives us resilience and a strong voice at the national level, but it masks an even more important strength, which is the county’s diversity. The towns and villages of Kent have their own identity and heritage which makes them attractive local communities. As such, the needs of our communities are often very specific, with local challenges requiring local solutions. The wide array of voluntary organisations, amenity societies and community groups are reflective of this diversity and give Kent a collective resilience beyond the sum of its individual parts.
This was tested to the extreme during the pandemic, but through working at both county and local level, across statutory services and the civic society, Kent’s response was second to none.
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Our scale can also mask significant differences in factors that fundamentally affect people’s lives, such as their skills levels and their health and life expectancy. These social and economic inequalities exist both within Kent, particularly between the East and the West of the county, and between Kent and the rest of the
UK, particularly compared to the wider South East. Our geography, particularly in East Kent, and the challenges of isolated coastal communities can reinforce pockets of intensive deprivation, which are too disconnected from economic opportunities available in the rest of the county. Government’s Levelling Up agenda presents a renewed opportunity to address these long-standing economic and social issues and catch up with the rest of the South East where Kent lags behind, whilst ensuring that we build on the success and potential of our more thriving communities. However, we face a significant risk that the relative affluence of Kent and the wider
South East will mean that the Government’s Levelling Up agenda overlooks the needs of some of the most deprived communities in the country which Kent is home to.
The county’s diversity is reflected in our economy where there is no one dominant business sector or employer. Our proximity to London gives us a strong commuter base, our rurality gives us strength in agriculture, the channel crossings and ports give us strength in logistics whilst our countryside and coastline gives us strength in tourism. But the mainstay of the Kent economy are the many thousands of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) that provide employment for Kent residents. This economic diversity allows the Kent economy to successfully adapt to different economic cycles and pressures. We also have a diverse school system that promotes excellence, and a range of further education institutions and universities with national and international reputations. However, Kent is still lagging behind the UK and South East in some indicators of economic success, including productivity, skill levels, and innovation, which is limiting the potential of individuals and the county.
Kent is uniquely positioned
Kent’s geographical position brings with it some major advantages that the county can continue to capitalise on. Our transport infrastructure quickly connects Kent to both London and the Continent through the strategic road and rail network, with Kent enjoying the benefit of the UK’s only High-Speed rail line (HS1).
As the country’s gateway with Europe, Kent is strategically important to the nation on issues like the security of our borders and the success of trade and inward investment. This brings huge opportunities, but it also brings unique challenges which the county has been managing for many years. This includes the impact of queuing lorries when there are border delays and the strain on our resources of supporting unaccompanied asylum-seeking children arriving at our shores.
While no other county could have coped as well as Kent has, this comes at a cost – for our residents, our businesses and the image of our county. To protect Kent’s quality of life and economic prosperity, fair solutions must be found to these national issues.
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Meanwhile, the issues of being a peninsular economy can exacerbate workforce challenges across both the public and private sector, with employers struggling to recruit to critical roles, especially when
London remains an attractive employment market. However, postCovid changes to working and living patterns represent a huge opportunity. As people work from home more and commute less, the economic benefit from the commuting population can shift to local towns and villages rather than being gained by London. This more flexible approach to working also brings the opportunity to address some of the workforce challenges in parts of the Kent economy, by attracting more of those who can work flexibly to choose to live in Kent. Moreover, as businesses look to relocate outside of the Capital, Kent’s strategic location, proximity and transport infrastructure can be used to secure new inward investment.