One in every 172 people in Dartford is homeless amid fears of a "rising tide" of evictions, new research shows.

According to alarming new figures obtained by homeless charity Shelter the town has the worst rate for homelessness in Kent.

When you exclude London, Dartford has the ninth highest rate of homeless people – relative to its population – in England, with 661 in council arranged temporary accommodation and atleast another four sleeping rough, as of June this year.

This means that roughly one in every 172 people in the area is affected by the issue, it is estimated.

Dartford was closely followed by Swale (225), Medway (339) and Gravesham (343). Meanwhile, Folkestone and Hythe had the lowest rate in the county at one in every 1,799 people.

The data obtained by Shelter revealed that London is the worst hit city for homelessness in England, with one in every 53 people without a home.

Outside the capital, Luton is the area with the highest rate with one in 66 people homeless, followed by Brighton and Hove, which has the highest rate in the south east at one in 78 people.

The Dartford Churches Winter Shelter has been unable to accommodate rough sleepers in the town again this year due to Covid restrictions on shared sleeping space.

It has been funded by Dartford council since 2017 and is aimed at helping homeless people stay safe and to assist them in finding somewhere more permanent to live.

Michael Smith, project administrator, said: "The decision we had to come to was that we could not run a shelter in the same way or come up with an alternative that was financially viable."

They continue to work with Dartford council to assist the vulnerable and he says the authority's housing team has been extremely proactive in helping homeless people, especially during the pandemic.

"If they are homeless the council work very quickly and work with them to find permanent accommodation," Michael added.

"So where there used to be a lot of people sleeping rough for days that is no longer happening."

The charity worker says the figures showing an increase in homeless people living in temporary accommodation organised by the council are actually testament to how much better it has become at "getting people off the streets".

He added: "The council is doing an amazing job, you can't fault what they are doing it is wonderful."

But it is clear to the volunteer that other structural issues remain which provide barriers to people at risk of becoming homeless.

"The problem is there is not enough social housing available and the council is finding a lot of private landlords won't accept people on universal credit," he said.

"So it's hard in terms of finding accommodation for them to move on."

Some sleeping rough are also understood to not have settled status in the UK and so are unable to apply for help, presenting further challenges to the local authority, it is claimed.

It comes amid growing fears of a “rising tide” of evictions with families in dire straits across Kent living in grotty hostel rooms where parents and siblings are often forced to share beds.

Last week the Bureau of Investigative Journalism published its data after reporting from possession courts, the hearings where judges decide on rent arrears cases.

It found that 85% of cases leave judges with no scope to take a tenant’s circumstances into account and decisions that left people homeless were being made in an average of 10 minutes.

In Dartford, a single day's sitting in July heard nine cases, of which two-thirds resulted in the property being repossessed. Of these cases, two took just six minutes for a judge to decide the application.

Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “We predicted the pandemic would trigger a rising tide of evictions and our services are starting to see the reality of this now.

"We’re flooded with calls from families and people of all ages who are homeless or on the verge of losing their home.”

The charity chief has warned with Covid protections such as the "Everyone In" scheme, the eviction ban, and the boost to Universal Credit, all withdrawn, the "flood gates" could soon open.

Kent's largest homeless charity Porchlight worked with local authorities and community groups to get homeless people into hotels and B&Bs at the start of the pandemic last year.

It said the "Everyone In" initiative – which helped bring 140 rough sleepers inside – undoubtedly saved lives, but it is now anticipating a big rise in the number of people needing help this winter.

The charity estimates more than 9,300 households in Kent are at breaking point because the protections they were relying on to keep a roof over their head – such as furlough and the boost to universal credit – have ended.

Councils in Kent are set to receive a £2.5 million grant to prevent homelessness in the county.

All 12 local authorities will be given £175,000 to help tackle rent arrears that have built up as result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

But whilst this and other funds are a significant increase to the amount that was being spent on homelessness before the pandemic, Porchlight says it is less than the government spent on the issue during Covid-19.

A spokesman for the charity said: "It's currently unclear if £640 million is enough to help everyone who is experiencing or facing homelessness.

"In addition, a lack of affordable housing in Kent prevents organisations like Porchlight from finding homes for people who no longer need our support."

They added: "With the impact of the pandemic pushing many more households into financial hardship, it’s a problem we can’t afford to ignore.

"We’re working with investors to purchase and develop more affordable homes and we’re raising awareness of the housing crisis with local influencers and decision makers so that we can explore solutions together."

A spokesperson for the government’s Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) said: “Tackling homelessness is an absolute priority for this government which is why we have committed more than £2 billion in funding over the next three years.

“On top of that we’re providing £375 million this year to prevent homelessness and have given councils in England £65 million to support people in rent arrears.”

A Dartford council spokesperson said: "Dartford has seen a steady rise in homelessness over the last two years.

"The Shelter report reflects that there are estimated to be 260 households in temporary accommodation overall, totalling an estimated 660 people.

"We consider that even one household in temporary accommodation is one too many and continue to work tirelessly to reduce the number in temporary accommodation down or prevent homelessness in the first instance.

"From the figures reported by Shelter, it is important to clarify that through our efforts to provide better quality, longer term accommodation, that nearly 60% of the occupants in temporary accommodation are actually in accommodation directly supported by members of our housing solutions team (not in B&B, or nightly paid emergency accommodation) who are working closely with these vulnerable households to ensure they are in a strong position to sustain tenancies in the future and less likely to face homelessness again.

They added: "Though we welcomed the move towards helping ‘Everyone In’ during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, this did reveal a more accurate picture of hidden homeless households.

"Since March 2020, we have provided accommodation to, and moved on into longer term accommodation, over 100 single people that we previously would not have had a statutory duty to accommodate.

"We welcome this extra support, despite the huge pressures it has placed on our resources and we continue to use additional funding from the DLUHC to work towards ending rough sleeping in Dartford.

"The homeless team continues to focus their efforts on preventing homelessness from occurring in the first instance for every household that that approaches our service. Sometimes we cannot stop a landlord taking possession of their property back or mediate between family members that cannot continue to accommodate their household.

"Domestic abuse is also a continuing, worrying trend increase and we again are focussing our efforts in safeguarding and responding to survivors of abuse to keep them and their children safe.

"Anyone in the Dartford area who is struggling with paying their housing costs or fuel bills due to the pandemic should get in contact with our housing team at the earliest opportunity in order for us to try to prevent the risk of homelessness."

For more information or to donate to Shelter’s Winter Appeal, click here.