Kent Weekend Briefing
Sunday, 13 September 2026
9 stories · 4-minute read
1993: Yitzhak Rabin and Yasser Arafat shook hands at the White House after signing the Oslo Accords, granting limited Palestinian autonomy.
On this day in history
The weekend in Kent · Kent Local News has published its first full Council Scorecard, rating all 14 of the county’s councils on bins, complaints, money, openness and planning — using their own data, with no council bothering to respond. It lands alongside a deep investigation into South East Water’s plan to serve 550,000 more people by 2050, a number that points squarely at housing growth nobody in Whitstable voted for. Both stories go to the heart of how Kent is governed and built.
The day ahead in Kent
Weather
Today: Cloudy morning, with rain continuing through the afternoon, high 22°C, low 18°C.
Tomorrow: Cloudy morning, becoming mostly clear in the afternoon, high 24°C, low 18°C.
Travel
Roads: All major Kent routes clear.
Rail: All Kent services running to schedule.
As of 23:00 from National Highways + National Rail.
Coastal tides
Dover: High 01:08 (6.76m) · Low 08:39 (0.80m) · High 13:21 (7.02m) · Low 20:57 (0.63m)
Margate: High 02:11 (4.76m) · Low 08:08 (0.82m) · High 14:17 (4.91m) · Low 20:40 (0.45m)
Tides via tidetimes.co.uk.
5 things to know
- Kent’s 14 councils ranked on bins, money, openness and planning data
- South East Water’s 550,000-person growth plan traced back to housing targets
- Danny Dyer and Becky Hill to join Leysdown sewage protest Sunday
- Ashford parking charges rising across all council car parks from now
- Battery speaker in Maidstone recycling bin sets refuse truck on fire
550,000
extra people South East Water is planning to supply in Kent by 2050
Kent number of the day
Top Kent Stories
- Kent’s 14 councils, scored: Kent Local News publishes its first full Council Scorecard
Published 10:25 BST
Why it matters · First scorecard ranking all 14 Kent councils gives residents a direct accountability tool - Kent’s water, Part A: the demand nobody in Whitstable voted for
Published 06:00 BST
Why it matters · Water demand projections reveal the scale of housing growth planned for Kent - Danny Dyer and Becky Hill to join Leysdown water protest, organisers say
Published 13:40 BST
Why it matters · Celebrity-backed protest this Sunday puts Leysdown and sewage pollution in the spotlight - Ashford parking charges to rise across all council car parks as free parking offers are withdrawn
Published 13:19 BST
Why it matters · Higher parking charges affect every Ashford resident and town-centre visitor immediately - Maidstone refuse truck catches fire after battery speaker put in recycling bin
Published 07:51 BST
Why it matters · Maidstone bin fire is a timely warning about battery disposal before collection day
Weekend reads — the week’s best of KLN
- Kent’s water, Part A: the demand nobody in Whitstable voted for
Published Sun 06:00 BST
South East Water plans for 550,000 more people by 2050. Per-person use is falling, leakage is meant to halve and business use is flat, so every litre of new demand is a new resident. This part… - Danny Dyer and Becky Hill to join Leysdown water protest, organisers say
Published Sat 13:40 BST
SOS Whitstable says Danny Dyer, Dani Dyer and Becky Hill will join its Stop the Sewage protest at Leysdown-on-Sea on Sunday 20 September. - Officers urge Ashford cabinet to reject calls for shorter Park Mall pedestrian route
Published Sat 13:19 BST
Officers recommended that Ashford Borough Council’s cabinet reject a motion and public petition seeking an additional pedestrian exit from the new temporary Park Mall car park, warning that any of… - Ashford parking charges to rise across all council car parks as free parking offers are withdrawn
Published Sat 13:19 BST
Ashford Borough Council’s cabinet considered proposals on 10 September 2026 to increase off-street and on-street parking tariffs, introduce a new £2 overnight charge, and move to two-yearly reviews… - Maidstone refuse truck catches fire after battery speaker put in recycling bin
Published Sat 07:51 BST
A battery-powered speaker thrown into a Maidstone recycling bin started a fire in a refuse truck, prompting the borough council to warn residents to keep batteries and battery-containing devices out…
Kent Sport
- Erith Town 2-0 Eastbourne Town: FA Trophy match report
Published 18:32 BST
Erith Town won 2-0 at home to Eastbourne Town in the FA Trophy. - Deal Town 3-0 Sheppey United: FA Trophy match report
Published 18:32 BST
Deal Town won 3-0 at home to Sheppey United in the FA Trophy. - Faversham Town 6-2 Horley Town: FA Trophy match report
Published 18:32 BST
Faversham Town won 6-2 at home to Horley Town in the FA Trophy.
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
- 14:00 · Personnel Committee — Maidstone
- 18:00 · Overview and Scrutiny Committee — Dover
“Whitstable’s harbour is one of the oldest in England, with records of oyster fishing there stretching back to Roman times, long before any water company had a say in the matter.”
Kent fact of the day