Kent Morning Briefing
Friday, 28 August 2026
10 stories · 3-minute read
1833: The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 received royal assent, making the purchase or ownership of slaves illegal across the British Empire.
On this day in history
The day in Kent · Kent County Council is pushing residents to back a campaign to restore Eurostar stops at Ashford and Ebbsfleet, stations that lost their direct European rail links years ago. A three-minute survey is the mechanism — simple, but the stakes for Kent’s connectivity to the continent are significant.
The day ahead in Kent
Weather
Today: Mostly clear morning, becoming cloudy in the afternoon, high 24°C, low 15°C.
Tomorrow: Cloudy morning, turning rainy in the afternoon, high 20°C, low 16°C.
Travel
Roads: All major Kent routes clear.
Rail: All Kent services running to schedule.
As of 02:00 from National Highways + National Rail.
Coastal tides
Dover: Low 07:04 (1.31m) · High 12:07 (6.51m) · Low 19:26 (1.13m) · High 00:23 (6.40m)
Margate: High 01:02 (4.51m) · Low 07:02 (1.01m) · High 13:08 (4.60m) · Low 19:32 (0.64m)
Tides via tidetimes.co.uk.
5 things to know
- Southern Water faces Elham residents’ questions at 4 September public meeting
- Canterbury man Luke Johnson jailed six years for child sexual abuse offences
- Sevenoaks District plan proposes 17,460 new homes — 63% rise on previous target
- Two arrested after stolen Planet X Tempest bike recovered in Ashford’s Yeoman Gardens
- Kent Police seek man over alleged indecent act near East Pier, Ramsgate Beach
17,460
new homes proposed in Sevenoaks District Local Plan between 2027 and 2042
Kent number of the day
Top Kent Stories
- Kent council urges residents to fill in survey to bring back Eurostar stops at Ashford and Ebbsfleet
Published 11:51 BST
Why it matters · Restoring Eurostar stops at Ashford and Ebbsfleet would transform Kent’s European connectivity. - Sevenoaks residents have until September to comment on plan for 17,460 new homes
Published 13:52 BST
Why it matters · 17,460 new homes across Sevenoaks district is a decision shaping the area for 15 years. - Canterbury man jailed for six years for sexual abuse of two children
Published 11:51 BST
Why it matters · A Canterbury man’s six-year sentence for child sexual abuse brings a serious case to close. - Southern Water holding public meeting in Elham over recent works
Published 23:53 BST
Why it matters · Elham residents get a rare direct line to Southern Water over recent disruptive works. - Free Heritage Events Fill Maidstone s September Calendar
Published 21:53 BST
Why it matters · Two Ashford arrests over a stolen bike show Kent Police acting on local acquisitive crime.
Crime & Justice
- Kent Police appeal for help after alleged indecent act on Ramsgate Beach
Published 23:52 BST
Officers have released a photograph of a man they wish to speak to after an alleged indecent act was reported near East Pier on Ramsgate Beach on 1 August 2026. Kent Police are seeking help… - Two arrested after stolen road bike recovered in Ashford
Published 17:52 BST
Kent Police seized a Planet X Tempest bicycle from an address in Yeoman Gardens on 25 August 2026 and bailed two suspects after the bike was reported stolen from Eureka Park nearly four weeks… - Canterbury man jailed for six years for sexual abuse of two children
Published 11:51 BST
Luke Johnson, 36, of Old Park Avenue, Canterbury, was sentenced to six years in prison on 21 August 2026 after pleading guilty to four offences including sexual assault and taking indecent images of…
Business & Economy
- ONS Launches Weekly Dashboard Tracking UK Economic Activity and Social Change
Published 23:51 BST
The Office for National Statistics has replaced its weekly bulletin with an interactive dashboard drawing on data from Rightmove, Revolut, the Insolvency Service and shipping trackers to give a… - Nearly One Million Young People in the UK Are NEET
Published 21:51 BST
ONS figures show 981,000 people aged 16 to 24 were not in education, employment or training in April to June 2026 — 30,000 more than a year earlier, though 30,000 fewer than the previous quarter… - Four in Five Less Experienced Investors Are Using AI for Investment Help, FCA Finds
Published 17:51 BST
The Financial Conduct Authority has warned that general-purpose AI chatbots carry no regulated consumer protection, as its own research shows 80 per cent of less experienced investors have already…
Financial markets
Bank of England (last 7 days):
Markets via Yahoo Finance; ONS + BoE via official feeds.
What’s on today
No public events scheduled today.
Coming up tomorrow
No public events scheduled tomorrow.
“Ebbsfleet in Kent sits atop one of Britain’s richest dinosaur fossil beds, with iguanodon bones first discovered there in the 19th century.”
Kent fact of the day