Many shopfronts sit boarded up or abandoned (Image: Tim Merry/Staff Photographer)
Nearly a decade after being named Kent’s saddest place and the most unfriendly place in the UK, Gillingham appears to be stuck in the same place – and for many residents, things feel worse rather than better.
In 2016, Kent Online labelled the Medway town the most depressed area in the county. Three years later, visitors took to TripAdvisor to call it “the unfriendliest town” in the country. Walking through the high street, it is easy to see why the former label has stuck. Furniture has been dumped on pavements, shopfronts sit boarded up or abandoned, and several signs hang with letters missing. Many of the shops that remain are closed, and those still trading are scattered between empty units.
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Will Charles says the town was bustling 50 years ago, but has since gone steadily downhill (Image: Tim Merry/Staff Photographer)
As I walked through the town centre, people avoided eye contact, keeping their heads down and moving quickly past one another. The sense of community feels fractured.
Anna, who has lived in Gillingham for three decades, says the town no longer feels like a place where people put down roots.
“I’ve lived here for 30 years and I don’t even know my neighbours,” she said. “It’s people in multiple occupancies or students going in and out. You see the streets, people are throwing their furniture out on the streets. It’s like everyone has given up.”
For long-term residents, the decline is particularly hard to accept. Will Charles has lived in Gillingham since the 1970s and remembers a very different town.
“I’ve lived here since the 1970s and it was once a thriving town,” he said. “However, more people are shopping on Amazon or choosing to go to Bluewater, so shops have shut and it now looks the way it does.”
Pointing along the high street, he added: “With no businesses, people aren’t going to come in and it turns to this. People are stuck on their phones and no one is looking up.”
Carol Austin, 69, says if she could pick up her house and move it out of Gillingham, she would (Image: Tim Merry/Staff Photographer)
Carol Austin, 69, moved to Gillingham in 1990 and says the loss of major retailers has changed how residents live their day-to-day lives.
“There used to be loads of shops here back in the day – Wilko, Debenhams,” she said. “I liked going to the high street to shop around and pick something out. Now I have to go elsewhere to shop.”
Despite investing heavily in her home, Carol admits she would leave if she could. “If I could pick up my house and put it somewhere out of Gillingham, I’d do it instantly. It’s a shame what has happened, really.”
Others point to rising homelessness and poverty as signs of a town under pressure. Charmaine moved to Gillingham from London to be closer to her brother, drawn by cheaper housing.
“It is much cheaper here, but at what cost?” she said. “Usually there are many homeless people here on the high street and it is sad to watch. It is difficult for them to get help.”
She added that her own son had been without accommodation for a long time before recently finding somewhere to live. “Sometimes on the streets someone asks you to buy them some bread or a sandwich so they can eat, and I do that for them. But I’m one of the minorities – you don’t see that happening much.”
Charmaine was drawn to Gillingham by the cheaper housing (Image: Tim Merry/Staff Photographer)
Police say they are aware of residents’ concerns and need them to be their “eyes and ears” in the town.
District Commander for Medway, Chief Inspector Paul Diddams, said: “Gillingham’s town centre policing team patrol the area every day, focused on tackling the small minority of thieves who target local businesses and those who persist in behaving in a disorderly manner.
“Beat officers and Police Community Support Officers regularly work on foot and can respond promptly to requests for assistance from retailers and residents. Shoplifters are targeted, with prolific offenders being charged and immediately placed before the courts to answer for their crimes.
“We remain aware of concerns about anti-social behaviour and, working with partners at Medway Council, our officers robustly enforce the town’s Public Space Protection Order, focusing on those responsible and those drinking alcohol in public spaces.
“Officers regularly liaise with business owners, shop staff and security teams so they can identify areas where there may be emerging issues. It is through this focused activity that the number of crimes committed in Gillingham South ward, which includes the town centre, decreased from 803 reports in the last quarter of 2024 to 698 reports in the same period in 2025 – a reduction of 13.1%.
“We will continue this town centre enforcement throughout 2026, and I would urge residents and business owners to contact us at the earliest opportunity to report a crime or inform us of any anti-social behaviour. We need you to be our ‘eyes and ears’ so that our resources can be deployed effectively, when and where they are needed.”
Medway Council has also rejected claims the area is beyond help. A Medway Council spokesman said: “Like many high streets around the country, Gillingham High Street has been affected by social and economic trends such as internet shopping and large out-of-town shopping sites.
“Nevertheless, it is far from becoming a ‘no-go zone’ and there is much work going into revitalising the town centre. Efforts are already making a clear difference, and the evolution of the high street is set to continue with further regeneration plans. The Love Gillingham Initiative, and Gillingham Taskforce and Gillingham Community Group, are all examples of groups working to drive forward a range of regeneration initiatives and improve the area.
“There is a clear passion for Gillingham among residents and others working for the town, and we’d encourage as many people as possible to get involved in the exciting work going on to drive Gillingham forward.”
