The Prime Minister has been urged to step in to stop London boroughs from placing homeless families in Kent, saying it places extra pressure on already-stretched councils.

Sittingbourne and Sheppey MP Gordon Henderson raised the issue at Prime Minister’s Questions today.

He said the practice of London councils sending families to temporary accommodation in his area was putting strain on schools, hospitals and other key council services.

He said: “Councils are required to provide them with the services they need, putting pressure on Kent schools, hospitals and social services - who receive no extra funding to provide that support.”

He said the London Mayor Sadiq Khan and London councils should be doing more to build homes in the capital and not place any additional burdens on hard-pressed council taxpayers.

The Prime Minister replied that it was the responsibility of London councils to provide accommodation in their own areas “so far as was reasonably practical”.

“We have changed the law so councils had to assess the impact relocation elsewhere would have,” she said.

“We do want the London Mayor and London boroughs to build more homes. The Mayor has been given extra money to build more homes and it is a pity he has not been building as many as we would like to see.”

The issue of councils - particularly London - sending families to the county has long been a source of frustration with Kent County Council and while it has been acknowledged by the government, the numbers remain high.

The government was recently warned it risks a Rotherham abuse scandal in Kent if it did not act to stop vulnerable children being placed in the county. Paul Luxmoore, executive head of the Coastal Academies Trust - five schools in Thanet - is defying orders to accept looked after children from outside Kent into his schools.

Speaking in February, he said: “There are 954 out-of-county looked after children in Kent and that could have dire consequences. The government just does not want to know. When - not if - something disastrous happens we are not going to be made to bear responsibility.”