Around 90 residents of Pavilion Court on Marine Terrace, Folkestone, cannot return home while structural specialists assess whether the fire-damaged Grand Burstin Hotel poses a collapse risk to their building.

Folkestone & Hythe District Council confirmed this week that displaced residents will remain in temporary accommodation until engineers have determined what happens to the neighbouring hotel — whether it is stabilised, repaired or demolished. The council’s housing team has been in contact with affected households and is providing welfare support while that process plays out.

The fire broke out at the Grand Burstin Hotel on Saturday, 19 September 2026. Kent Fire and Rescue Service described it as very severe. Around 280 hotel guests were evacuated during the blaze, and Pavilion Court residents were told to leave as a precaution after inspectors warned the fire may have weakened the hotel’s structure. No injuries were reported. Kent Fire and Rescue Service said the cause is under investigation and that the incident is being treated as suspicious.

Folkestone & Hythe District Council issued an emergency prohibition notice on 21 September 2026 — a legal order that prevents anyone from entering, living in or using the Pavilion Court buildings until the safety risk from the adjacent hotel has been resolved. A welfare centre was set up at Three Hills Sports Park during the initial emergency, and residents have since been moved into hotel accommodation in Folkestone.

The case for keeping residents away from the site is straightforward: engineers cannot safely inspect a potentially unstable structure with people living next door, and the council says temporary accommodation and welfare support are in place to help households through the disruption.

But the reality for many of those 90 residents is harder. Hotel rooms don’t offer the same space, privacy or stability as home — and for households with children, pets, disabilities or caring responsibilities, the upheaval is considerable. No return date has been set. Residents are entirely dependent on the pace of the structural investigation and whatever works follow from it.

Kent Fire and Rescue Service said the severity of the fire created genuine structural-integrity concerns and that structural inspectors were consulted as a direct result. Kent Police are also involved in the ongoing investigation into the fire’s cause.

The Grand Burstin is operated by Britannia Hotels. Whether the building will be repaired, stabilised or demolished has not been announced, and that decision will directly determine when — or whether — life on Marine Terrace can return to normal.

Key information

  • Affected residents: Contact Folkestone & Hythe District Council’s housing team for welfare support, accommodation advice or help with specific needs such as access to belongings, medical requirements or school arrangements
  • Do not enter: Pavilion Court and the Grand Burstin site on Marine Terrace remain off-limits to residents and visitors unless authorised by the relevant authorities
  • No return date confirmed: The prohibition notice stays in force until the structural investigation concludes and any required safety works are completed — no timetable has been published as of 23 September 2026