A Kent council is demanding answers over suspicions a London council is filling properties in its town with its homeless by offering “large incentives” to landlords.

Gravesham council claims the practice is putting “considerable pressure” on its housing services and is taking away homes it could use to accommodate its own residents in need.

It has written to Lewisham Council requesting it stop placing its residents in temporary accommodation in Gravesend.

The letter comes less than four months after the south-east London council denied such a practice was taking place and suggests the denial was “not entirely accurate”.

Addressing Lewisham’s newly elected mayor, Cllr Brenda Dacres, the letter – which has been seen exclusively by KentOnline – accuses the council of using a private sector company offering guaranteed rents to landlords if they take in its homeless.

Leader of Gravesham council John Burden wrote: “As a council leader, I wrote to you on November 15 2023 as it had come to my attention, albeit anecdotally via our landlord forum, that Lewisham is providing local landlords who have accommodation within the borough of Gravesham large incentives to secure private rentals.”

He accuses Lewisham Council of placing extra pressure on Gravesham by taking away properties it could be using to accommodate its own residents.

The London council said it was “not a deliberate strategy” but a reflection of “the reality of the current housing crisis” with nearby boroughs sometimes being a “back-up” option.

But Cllr Burden added: “As a small borough this has a considerable impact on our housing service and is unacceptable.”

Following a similar suspicion last November, Lewisham Council told KentOnline no families had been moved into privately rented sector accommodation in Gravesham.

A spokesman said: “Our focus is always on securing properties in or close to the borough.”

But Cllr Burden believes the comment was ill-informed after his officers recently discovered placements being made into Gravesham from Lewisham.

In the letter, he said: “Two landlords working with our successful not-for-profit social lettings agency, GBC Lettings, have confirmed that their homes were formally managed by Local Housing Solutions and their last tenants were Lewisham temporary accommodation placements made by your organisation.”

He added: “Having carried out some research on Local Housing Solutions, I can confirm that they are a private sector company offering guaranteed rents to landlords and serve a multitude of London boroughs, including your own.

“However, on the basis of information we are now aware of, Local Housing Solutions have broadened their horizons beyond those London boroughs and are offering landlords in Gravesham those guaranteed rents and placing temporary accommodation tenants from those London boroughs here.”

He said it was now causing a significant impact on Gravesham council and its residents.

Cllr Burden added: “The housing crisis is not unique to London and all areas feel the pressures of homelessness and lack of available accommodation.”

He issued an appeal to the mayor to ensure the practice stops.

In the letter, dated March 4, he stated: “Can I respectfully request that temporary and permanent placements are not made within Gravesham and any existing bookings are moved as soon as possible to enable Gravesham a fighting chance to access the private sector.”

As of this month, Gravesham council had more than 246 households in temporary accommodation (TA), 34 of which were housed out of the area, and the bill is expected to be £2.7 million for the year 2023/24.

The local authority says this is because high-interest rates and the cost-of-living crisis have led to record numbers of individuals approaching it for support and as it only has a finite number of council-owned homes, it has to look elsewhere but does officially notify those authorities.

London councils placing homeless people in other neighbouring boroughs or areas is not a unique practice.

In November KentOnline reported how Newham council, also based in the capital, was to place around 80 homeless people in Anchorage House, Chatham.

The move sparked anger that the much-needed accommodation, an office-block which had undergone a £9 million refurbishment, was not being used to address Medway’s own housing backlog.

Medway Council has since negotiated a discount deal with the landlord of that property for nine of the 81 self-contained flats to be distributed to local families.

A spokesperson for Lewisham Council said: “Our focus is always on securing properties in or close to the borough.

“However, with over 2,800 Lewisham families living in temporary accommodation and given the shrinking supply of private rented properties in London, we do sometimes have to look at sourcing private rented accommodation outside of London.

“This is not a deliberate strategy, but it does reflect the reality of the current housing crisis.

“Our staff are under pressure, often in emergency situations, to secure temporary housing, and we cannot discount nearby boroughs as a back-up option.

“The housing crisis cannot be solved without government action and we have previously reached out to the leader of Gravesham Council to meet with us and discuss how to highlight our common challenges at a national level.”