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Preparations have started to break up an encampment being used by rough sleepers just metres from a busy ring road.
Several of the homeless people who have been living in tents pitched on the edge of the busy dual carriageway in Canterbury have already been housed by the council.
But occupants have been told to clear their belongings as Canterbury City Council (CCC) says it is preparing to “kickstart” efforts to clear the site which has been occupied in the perilous location since last summer.
Visible from the city wall and the bridge to Canterbury East railway station, the encampment consists of a row of tents, some of which were abandoned and others that were in use.
The array of tents is located at the junction along Pin Hill with Station Road East, situated directly between the road, the back of Club Chemistry and the rear garden of Catching Lives’ day centre.
Concerns have previously been raised about how close the makeshift campsite is to the ring road and that it could block the bus lane.
But in October last year, those based at the site were given assurances by the city council there was “no intention to remove any tents being lived in” or to “take away anything they identified as their possessions”.
Now, the council says a total of 21 people have been found somewhere to live as it asks the residents to move on.
It has been working with local charities including Catching Lives and Porchlight to help those at the site.
Support has also included access to healthcare and dental care through the NHS and support to help people overcome addiction to alcohol and drugs.
Cllr Pip Hazelton (Lab), CCC cabinet member for housing, said: “It has broken everyone’s hearts to see people living in this way in such a dangerous place throughout the winter and officers in teams from across the council have done all they can to rehome people and offer other forms of support.
“Only last week we managed to find emergency bed space with Porchlight and persuaded someone to take advantage of that opportunity.
“There is no magic wand and we cannot force people to accept our help.
“The challenge all along has been that as soon as we find one person a home, they are replaced by someone equally desperate for help.
“While we prefer to help people to move on, this situation simply cannot go on and now we need to take legal action to bring this sad situation to an end.
“We have overcome challenges with knowing who owns the land and working our way through the complexities of what legislation and powers we can rely on.
“We are now asking people to remove their tents and belongings before we then kickstart the legal process that results in enforcement action a little further down the line.”
Letters were posted at the site today asking people to move their belongings within seven days.
