One part of Kent has built three times more affordable homes than any other area in the county.

Over the past 12 years, an average of 1,140 affordable houses have been built in Maidstone every year, according to latest research.

Affordable housing is a term for homes available for sale or rent to people whose needs aren't met by the private market.

This could be through social housing, shared ownership, first-time buyer schemes or through commitments from developers to offer prices lower than the market value.

The research, carried out to develop a new Kent and Medway Housing Strategy for the Kent and Medway Economic Partnership, saw Maidstone top the table for the number of such houses.

Council leader Stuart Jeffery (Green) is very proud of the work. He said: “Maidstone has built a third of all the affordable housing across Kent.

“Other districts have simply not pulled their weight.

“Their failure is one of the reasons for the housing crisis in Kent and those other districts need to up their game.”

At the opposite end of the scale is Sevenoaks with, on average, only 42 affordable homes a year.

Its council points to its swathes of green belt land as the reason behind the figure.

A spokesman for Sevenoaks council said: “Sevenoaks is one of the most protected areas in the country with 93% green belt, the second highest of any council area in England.

“Because of this, and other protections, the government’s overall housing target for the district has been lower compared with other areas.

“On average, of the 284 new homes built annually over the past 10 years, 15% were affordable.

“However, we recognise there is a need for more affordable homes. Our draft Local Plan includes a target of 40% of new homes being made affordable.

“In addition to this, Quercus Housing, a council-owned business, was set up with the sole purpose of providing affordable housing. So far, the company has purchased over 50 properties for affordable rent in the district.”

Maidstone’s stand-out figures have been achieved partly because the town has been building more homes than anyone else but also because it has a far higher proportion of those homes earmarked as affordable properties.

In the five years up to March 2023, for example, Maidstone saw 6,040 house completions of which 2,810 were affordable homes - that’s a ratio of 46.5%.

Dover on the other hand, in the same five-year period, managed just 2,120 house completions, of which only 200 were affordable - a ratio of just 9.4%.

Perhaps as a consequence, Maidstone also scores well in terms of the small number of homeless people sleeping on the streets.

Its average number of rough sleepers between April 2023 and March 2024 was four.

Sevenoaks had the lowest average - just one - while Medway and Canterbury were joint highest on 34.

While Maidstone councillors are pleased with the result, the district is still facing a housing crisis.

In the report prepared by consultants AECOM, a list of the number of homeless households waiting to find a permanent home in each authority was also published.

In Maidstone, that figure rose from 901 in 2018/19 to 1,023 in 2022/23 - an increase of 14% over four years.

That was the highest percentage increase of any authority.

Eight of the 12 other Kent authorities recorded a drop, while Medway remained unchanged.

The report is intended to help the local authorities come up with a new joint housing strategy for 2025.

Between them, the Kent and Medway authorities are home to 1,855,844 people in 759,893 households.

The population has grown by 7% over the last 10 years (to 2021) and by 18% over the past 20 years.

The biggest population increases have been found in Ashford, Dartford, Maidstone, Swale and Tonbridge and Malling.

The growth in the number of households has exactly matched the growth in population - 7% and 18% respectively.

The housing stock across Kent and Medway grew by 9% over the last 10 years and by 21% over the last 20 years, which suggests the housing shortage should be easing up.

There are currently 810,611 homes in Kent and Medway, which is actually more than the number of households but includes vacant properties and second homes.

Across the county, 19.2% of households live in the private rented sector, and that proportion is growing.

The Local Housing Allowance - the maximum housing benefit that can be claimed - remained static for several years, while private sector rents continued to rise, and the researchers suggest it was poor affordability of even the cheapest rental properties for those reliant on housing benefit that contributed directly to more households becoming homeless and requiring assistance through the provision of temporary accommodation.

The report suggests there is a need for almost 5,000 new affordable homes each year across Kent and Medway to meet the needs of households unable to afford to buy or rent in the market.

In the last five years, the delivery of affordable housing in Kent and Medway has averaged 1,522 units per annum – equating to around just one-third of what is needed.

In June this year, there were 17,608 households on local authority housing waiting lists, which are also known as housing registers.

Bellway is one of the major housebuilders in the county with projects under way at Harbour Village in Northfleet, Parsonage Place in Maidstone and Crown Quay Lane in Sittingbourne.

A spokesperson for Bellway said: “Of the 7,654 housing completions by Bellway in the last financial year, a quarter were sold to affordable housing providers, supplying much-needed affordable homes to communities throughout the UK.

“The provision of affordable homes is dependent on a number of factors, including the demand from affordable housing providers, and requirements from local authorities, who may have differing regulations for the provision of these homes.

“However, it is important to also understand the impact that the sale of private homes has on local areas as well, with people moving up or down the housing chain, which releases affordable housing stock elsewhere in the area.

“A healthy housing market is one where every rung of the housing ladder is working effectively, as this movement allows first-time buyers to purchase affordable homes while providing opportunities to move up the ladder for those whose requirements change over time.”

DHA is one of the county’s largest planning consultants, acting on behalf of a wide range of developers. Land director Mark Presland said building affordable housing has its challenges.

He said: “The inclusion of affordable housing in development projects faces significant challenges due to a combination of historical priorities, financial constraints, and logistical difficulties.

“These challenges are rooted in specific issues that have evolved over time, making it increasingly difficult for developers to provide the desired affordable housing that local planning policy requires.

“Brownfield land, or previously developed land, is quite rightly prioritised for development. However, it often carries higher costs due to existing buildings, demolition, or contamination issues.

“For development to proceed, the land value must exceed its existing use value, which is not always the case.

“As a result, developers often negotiate lower levels of affordable housing to make projects financially viable.”

Mr Presland added: “A more recent and worsening challenge stems from the financial position of housing associations.

“Over the past few years, housing associations have faced rising costs, including borrowing expenses, maintenance, and upgrades to older stock such as cladding and mould/damp repairs.

“These financial pressures have reduced their capacity to deliver new affordable homes. This situation has a cascading effect, delaying larger private housing developments that rely on housing association partnerships to fulfil their affordable housing commitments.

“The final issue is the inclusion of affordable housing requirements on smaller development sites. While this policy aims to ensure affordability across a range of projects, it has created logistical challenges.

“Housing associations often prefer larger sites due to the number of projects they can manage and the efficiency of managing larger clusters of properties.

“This leaves smaller sites struggling to secure affordable partners, often resulting in off-site payments instead of on-site affordable housing.

“These challenges underscore the need for a comprehensive and collaborative approach to affordable housing.

“Solutions include providing additional grants to offset higher costs associated with brownfield development, enabling developers to include affordable housing without compromising viability.

“Targeted grant funding to support housing associations in upgrading their existing stock and ensuring long-term rent stability is also critical, to free up their budgets to deliver greater numbers of new dwellings.

“Finally, adopting a more strategic approach to affordable housing delivery by working with housing associations and local authorities to provide a greater understanding can help overcome logistical barriers and ensure affordable housing delivery is achievable across projects of varying scales.”

Matthew Woodhead is planning director at DHA. He said: “DHA is committed to being a part of this solution, hosting a regular Affordable Housing Roundtable that has run successfully over the past four years.

“With a new service specialising in affordable homes launching in early 2025, DHA aims to address this logistical gap in the market and provide the much-needed link between developers and housing associations.”

Anabel Palmer is the executive director of property development and partnerships at one of the social housing providers, West Kent Housing Association.

She said: “The whole country is currently facing a real housing challenge and Kent is no different.

“There are record numbers of families living in temporary accommodation.

“Some of the reasons for that are the increased costs of private rented accommodation, the reduced amount of private and social rented housing that is available and a slowdown in the number of homes being built for rent and sale.

“One of the most effective ways to solve the housing crisis is to build more homes.

“The best way to do that is through housing associations, local authorities and local developers working together to build as many good quality homes as possible, in the right places, to meet local need.

“At West Kent we are working with our local authority partners across Kent to do this, making sure that we don't just build homes, we also consider the impact of what we are doing on existing and new communities.

“A couple of great examples of this include our new scheme at Castor Park where we are working in partnership with Tonbridge and Malling and Maidstone councils and our contractors Penenden Heath to build 106 new homes for rent and shared ownership, alongside a range of community services.

“In addition, our partnership work with Sevenoaks council and Helix turning outdated and redundant garage sites into 14 high-quality new homes for local people.”

When things go wrong, and people can’t secure the housing they need, it often falls to charities such as Making A Difference to Maidstone (MADM) to help.

As well as providing practical help with clothing and food donations, the charity assists with housing and benefit advice.

In one rare case recently, it even housed a homeless person in a room at its headquarters in Church Street for three months.

Rob Foley is the charity’s operations director. He said: “The lack of affordable housing has had a profound and far-reaching impact on the community, touching the lives of countless individuals and families.

“We witness daily the struggles of people unable to secure safe and stable accommodation due to soaring rents and limited housing options.

“This housing crisis has created a domino effect, contributing to financial instability, mental health challenges, and even homelessness for many residents.

“Those on low incomes or in vulnerable situations are often forced into overcrowded, substandard living conditions, which only exacerbate the cycle of poverty and hardship.

“For our charity, addressing this crisis is not just about advocating for sustainable, long-term solutions.

“We work tirelessly to support those in need by offering housing advice, and community resources, but these measures can only go so far without systemic change.

We call on local authorities, developers, and policymakers to prioritize affordable housing

“We call on local authorities, developers, and policymakers to prioritize affordable housing.

“By investing in accessible housing options, we can foster a community where everyone can thrive, reducing inequality and strengthening the social fabric of our towns.

“Together, we can make a tangible difference and build a future where housing insecurity is a challenge of the past.”