Kent's Draft Strategic Statement

Update November 2025

Thank you to everyone who took the time to provide feedback on the draft Strategic Statement: Reforming Kent 2025-2028.

A summary of the feedback, along with the final draft of the Strategic Statement, will be presented and discussed by KCC Members at County Council on 6 November 2025. At this meeting, Members will be asked to approve the Statement as the Council’s overarching strategy.

The County Council report, which includes a summary of the feedback and details of changes made to the Statement, is available in the Documents section of this webpage. The papers for County Council and the link to watch the webcast of the meeting can be found at Kent.gov.uk.

Once available, a link to the final Strategic Statement will be added to this webpage.

Original text:

Reforming Kent 2025-2028

We are seeking your views on our draft Strategic Statement. This sets out the aims and objectives of the Council over the next three years and replaces the previous Strategic Statement. It is shorter in timeframe due to the Government's proposals for Local Government Reorganisation and the creation of new council structures in Kent and Medway in 2028. However, this shortened timeframe does not weaken or limit our ambition for Kent.

Our commitments to our residents are that we will:

  • Keep council tax increases as low as possible but will maintain the quality-of-service provision.
  • Ask the difficult questions and challenge long held assumptions within the county council.
  • Not accept the status quo where it fails our residents whether as service users or taxpayers.
  • Have a ruthless focus on value for money, cost efficiency and common sense.
  • Expect those who we support to respect the services and monies provided to them.
  • Reward those who work hard and achieve on merit rather than tick boxes.

The draft Strategic Statement is focused on establishing a reformed council and is centred on four aims that are structured around the areas of greatest challenge and opportunity, each of these are supported by a number of objectives and priorities.

The four aims are:

  • Putting Kent residents first
  • Reforming Kent County Council
  • Supporting residents that need help
  • Building better communities

For each of the objectives the document sets out the local context, why this matters to Kent, whilst outlining the priorities the Council will address.

Your feedback

Please provide your comments on the draft Strategic Statement using the feedback form.

Your views are important to ensuring that we are listening to our residents and understand the issues that matter most to you.

What happens next?

We will collate all the feedback and analyse this ahead of taking the final draft to County Council on the 6 November 2025.

A link to the final Strategic Statement will be published on this webpage.

Update November 2025

Thank you to everyone who took the time to provide feedback on the draft Strategic Statement: Reforming Kent 2025-2028.

A summary of the feedback, along with the final draft of the Strategic Statement, will be presented and discussed by KCC Members at County Council on 6 November 2025. At this meeting, Members will be asked to approve the Statement as the Council’s overarching strategy.

The County Council report, which includes a summary of the feedback and details of changes made to the Statement, is available in the Documents section of this webpage. The papers for County Council and the link to watch the webcast of the meeting can be found at Kent.gov.uk.

Once available, a link to the final Strategic Statement will be added to this webpage.

Original text:

Reforming Kent 2025-2028

We are seeking your views on our draft Strategic Statement. This sets out the aims and objectives of the Council over the next three years and replaces the previous Strategic Statement. It is shorter in timeframe due to the Government's proposals for Local Government Reorganisation and the creation of new council structures in Kent and Medway in 2028. However, this shortened timeframe does not weaken or limit our ambition for Kent.

Our commitments to our residents are that we will:

  • Keep council tax increases as low as possible but will maintain the quality-of-service provision.
  • Ask the difficult questions and challenge long held assumptions within the county council.
  • Not accept the status quo where it fails our residents whether as service users or taxpayers.
  • Have a ruthless focus on value for money, cost efficiency and common sense.
  • Expect those who we support to respect the services and monies provided to them.
  • Reward those who work hard and achieve on merit rather than tick boxes.

The draft Strategic Statement is focused on establishing a reformed council and is centred on four aims that are structured around the areas of greatest challenge and opportunity, each of these are supported by a number of objectives and priorities.

The four aims are:

  • Putting Kent residents first
  • Reforming Kent County Council
  • Supporting residents that need help
  • Building better communities

For each of the objectives the document sets out the local context, why this matters to Kent, whilst outlining the priorities the Council will address.

Your feedback

Please provide your comments on the draft Strategic Statement using the feedback form.

Your views are important to ensuring that we are listening to our residents and understand the issues that matter most to you.

What happens next?

We will collate all the feedback and analyse this ahead of taking the final draft to County Council on the 6 November 2025.

A link to the final Strategic Statement will be published on this webpage.

  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    Feedback form

    We would like to hear your views on the draft Strategic Statement. We recommend that you read the draft Statement before providing your feedback.

    In line with other local authorities and government departments, we ask people to register to take part in some activities to give people the opportunity to choose to be kept informed. It also means that you will receive an email with your answers to the questionnaire once you have submitted it.