Kent Morning Briefing
Thursday, 16 July 2026
The day in Kent · Nine new measles cases have been confirmed in Kent and Medway since the start of July, with health chiefs warning of limited community transmission and urging parents to check their children’s MMR vaccination status. The outbreak is a reminder that vaccine-preventable diseases remain a real risk when uptake slips — and that catching up now matters.
The day ahead in Kent
Weather
Today: Cloudy morning, becoming clear in the afternoon, high 26°C, low 17°C.
Tomorrow: Clear morning, high 28°C, low 14°C.
Travel
Roads (1 incident): M25 — M25 Anti-clockwise to M40 Southbound link road closure.
Rail: All Kent services running to schedule.
As of 04:30 from National Highways + National Rail.
Coastal tides
Dover: High 01:04 (6.61m) · Low 08:43 (0.85m) · High 13:21 (6.79m) · Low 21:03 (0.61m)
Margate: High 02:04 (4.82m) · Low 08:12 (0.83m) · High 14:22 (4.72m) · Low 20:56 (0.32m)
Tides via tidetimes.co.uk.
5 things to know
- Sevenoaks District Council selects Wates Group for £138m High Street regeneration scheme
- Gledis Uka jailed 10 years after 19 burglaries across Edenbridge, Sevenoaks and beyond
- Kent Police seek man after e-scooter collision injures 15-year-old on Mill Road, Gillingham
- CCTV appeal launched after reported assault on Tufton Street, Ashford town centre
- Prolific burglar sentenced to 10 years for winter burglary spree across southern England
Top Kent Stories
- Prolific burglar jailed for 10 years after targeting homes across southern England
Published 23:52 BST
Prolific burglar jailed for 10 years after targeting homes across southern England A burglar believed to have travelled to the UK each winter to burgle residential properties across the south of… - Measles cases rise in Kent and Medway as health chiefs urge MMR catch-up
Published 23:52 BST
Nine new measles cases have been confirmed in Kent and Medway since 1 July 2026, prompting health authorities to warn of limited community transmission and call on parents to ensure children have had… - Sevenoaks picks Wates to lead £138m town centre rebuild including new leisure centre
Published 21:52 BST
Sevenoaks District Council has chosen construction firm Wates Group as its preferred partner for a £138 million scheme to replace the ageing leisure centre and redevelop land east of the High Street… - Albanian burglar jailed for 10 years after two-year crime spree across Kent and southern England
Published 21:52 BST
Gledis Uka, 30, of no fixed address, admitted 19 offences at Maidstone Crown Court after smashing his way into homes in Edenbridge, Sevenoaks and across seven other counties. A 30-year-old Albanian… - Kent Police release CCTV image after alleged e-scooter collision injures boy in Gillingham
Published 19:52 BST
A 15-year-old pedestrian was taken to hospital with a leg injury after an alleged e-scooter collision on Mill Road, Gillingham, at about 4.30pm on 28 June 2026. Kent Police have released a CCTV image…
Crime & Justice
- CCTV appeal after alleged assault in Ashford town centre
Published 19:52 BST
Kent Police has released images of three men after a reported assault in Tufton Street, Ashford, on 11 July 2026, with the victim still unidentified and a 28-year-old man from Gillingham bailed…
Business & Economy
No additional B&E stories in the last 12 hours.
Kent Sport
No additional sport updates in the last 12 hours.
Financial markets
Bank of England (last 7 days):
- PRA and FCA propose new captive insurance regime to drive UK growth and competitiveness
- Minutes of the Money Market Committee meeting – June 2026
- UK financial regulators to begin overseeing Critical Third Parties announced by HM Treasury
Markets via Yahoo Finance; ONS + BoE via official feeds.
What’s on today
- 10:00 · County Council — Maidstone
Coming up tomorrow
No public events scheduled tomorrow.
“Rochester Cathedral, founded in 604 AD, is England’s second oldest cathedral — just one year younger than Canterbury’s.”
Kent fact of the day