A councillor will ask the authorities to think again about switching street lights off in Sheerness after a man was stabbed on Thursday night.

Cllr Angela Harrison (Lab) said the latest incident, in which a victim in his 40s was robbed of his mobile phone, proves that areas of town should not be left in the dark.

The Sheerness West representative said: “I’ll be writing to the cabinet member for Kent County Council asking them to look again at the issue of lighting due to this latest incident and others in the area.

“Yes, we’ve got to save money, but I don’t want my residents suffering because of it.”

In Thursday’s incident, a man was attacked in an alley between Harris Road and Granville Road.

It happened at about 9.35pm when he was approached by another man who stabbed him and stole his phone.

The victim suffered a knife wound to the stomach and was taken to King’s College Hospital in London.

His injuries were non-life threatening.

At about 10.45pm, a police helicopter circled areas of Sheerness and Sittingbourne in a search for the attacker.

Detectives continued to carry out investigations at the scene of the robbery the next morning.

Last week’s attack comes after an incident in nearby Invicta Road on September 24 in which a woman was threatened by a knife-wielding attacker who made off with her handbag and purse.

A 17-year-old boy was arrested in connection with the assault.

In April KCC’s part-night street lighting scheme, which is estimated will save the county £1m a year, reached Swale.

It means some lights are switched off between 1am and 6.30am, while others are turned off permanently.

Although lack of street lighting is unlikely to have played a part in either of the town centre attacks, Cllr Harrison said residents need peace of mind.

She said: “The perception has always been that there’s a criminal on every corner, but police surveys tell us we’re more secure than we used to be.

“The problem is you get a spate of these crimes and it might not be local people committing them, it could be people from the mainland.”

n Any witnesses to Thursday night’s robbery are asked to contact DC Richard Allingham on 01795 419250 and quote reference number, XY/035852/14.