A council has announced ambitious plans to splash out almost £39 million on 170 homes in a bid to stop shipping residents to far-flung places.

Thanet District Council (TDC) hopes purchasing a series of one, two and three-bed homes across the district will help it control the number of households it homes in other districts.

Of the 303 placements it has, more than half are currently outside Thanet – with some families taken as far away as Medway.

TDC bosses will pledge £38,762,000 to the project, if agreed at a cabinet meeting next Thursday (December 19).

The money forms part of the annual budget in both 2025/26 and 2026/27, with hopes of saving more than £1 million a year within a decade.

The cost of temporary accommodation has increased in recent years, with the bill doubling in five years for councils.

The quality of those placements has often been brought into question too, with issues of damp, mould and mice reported in Thanet.

Since the start of this tax year – April 1 – TDC has prevented 192 households from becoming homeless but it admits there is still a lot to do.

At present, it has 303 households in temporary accommodation, 146 in Thanet and a further 157 outside of the area.

Cllr Helen Whitehead (Lab), deputy leader and cabinet member for housing, said: “The social, emotional, and financial strain for Thanet residents of being placed out of the area is enormous.

“People from Thanet need to be able to stay in Thanet.

“It is damaging for families and individuals, places strain on education placements and the management of health conditions, and this is why I have long argued for investment in in-house, local temporary accommodation.

“Creating temporary accommodation that ensures that people facing homelessness can stay in the district is vital to them being able to maintain work, school and family connections at a time when they’re most needed.”

The letting of these homes would be in accordance with the Council’s TA policy which approved by cabinet in July 2024.

To ensure high-quality, well-supported accommodation for residents, TDC says it would be managed by the same tenant and leaseholder teams that look after the council’s social housing.

There will also be a dedicated temporary accomodation co-ordinator to support the tenants while they remain in council houses and to help them move on to permanent housing.

Other councils have made efforts to tackle the housing crisis, with Ashford Borough Council snapping up ‘homeless pods’.

The leader of the council has described the project as a “beacon of hope” as the authority looks to cut its temporary accommodation bill.