A group of homeless people are facing eviction from woodland where they have set up camp.

There are thought to be about nine tents inside the camp behind trees off Marlborough Road and Brompton Road in Gillingham.

Medway Council, which owns the land, is now taking legal action to evict the occupants.

Liz Gaze and Darren Shaw, from the outreach group One Big Family, have been helping those at the camp by providing them with warm clothes, sleeping bags and food as well as recommending agencies where they can go for help.

They said the group have been keeping the site tidy and sorting their waste and recycling, while a bin has been provided for disposing of medical items.

Miss Gaze said: “There are other pockets of homeless people across Medway. There are 20-year-olds to 70-year-olds. They are mainly men but there are women.

“The majority are from Medway but it doesn’t matter to us – they’re all human beings.”

She said while there are drug addicts and alcoholics among the homeless community, there are also care leavers, people with learning difficulties and those who have lost their jobs or split up with partners.

She added: “Housing is not the be-all and end-all – it’s that not that easy. They need guided and assisted living. They need support. People need that emotional support.”

Eric Slater, from the Salvation Army, said his organisation was aware of the group and some had been attending drop-in sessions on a Tuesday evening.

The church provides meals, a shower and a change of clothes as well as advice on housing and drugs and alcohol.

The sessions are usually attended by about 35 people.

Council officials visited the camp last Tuesday to give the residents 72 hours to move on. When they did not leave, council officers returned on Friday to explain what will happen next.

The council has since lodged an application with the court, and a date will be set for a hearing at which a judge will make a decision on how long the people have to move on.

A legal notice will then be served to them with all the details.

The camp is not far from a
busy road but a person who works nearby said although they were aware of the camp and
had seen the smoke from their fires the group had not caused any problems.

The camp is next to the entrance to the Great Lines Heritage Park. Medway parkrun uses the venue every Saturday for its 5km run and one regular member said they had no idea people were living there.

Earlier this year, homeless Samson Paine was found dead in a tent pitched on land opposite Chatham bus station.

His death led to the setting up of the group Justice For Medway Homeless People.