The Home Office is applying for 60 new parking spaces for immigration staff dealing with asylum seekers.
Workers at the Kent Intake Unit (KIU), whose tasks include handling small boat arrivals, are forced to park on nearby Dover roads due to the lack of spaces.
It is hoped the new bays will go at the top of Channel View Road, high up the hill from Dover Western Docks, where rescued asylum seekers are usually taken.
A letter to Dover District Council from applicant agents Cushman and Wakefield says: “The demands on the KIU have increased significantly since it was opened.
“There is insufficient parking space on the KIU site and staff are currently parking on-street along Channel View Road.
“It is understood that the current parking arrangements are impacting other local businesses in the area.
“The proposal seeks to provide an additional 60 parking spaces at the site for HO staff to use, removing the need for informal roadside parking in the area.”
The planning application is for 46 indoor and 14 outdoor bays for vacant land at Unit 1&2, a site comprised of a warehouse, stores and offices. It is up the hill from Channel House, the headquarters of P&O Ferries.
This application is only for partial change of use at the 3,391sqm site.
The agents add: “The existing office floorspace will remain and provide employment associated with the KIU facility, which has expanded significantly since opening.”
A consultant report says there are only 10 spaces at KIU’s main base without double parking.
Only 15% live less than two miles away and the employees work round-the-clock shifts. More than 80% of staff come to work by car in the mornings, 90% or more for late or night shifts.
A Home Office spokesperson told KentOnline: “Planning permission for extra parking at Kent Intake Unit is solely owing to limited on-site parking for staff.
“This will reduce the impact that current parking arrangements have on other local businesses in the vicinity.”
The Kent Intake Unit primarily deals with new arrivals detected near the Port of Dover and the surrounding Kent area.
They have a particular focus on processing unaccompanied children.
Their work involves identifying them and working closely with Kent Children’s Services to process and place them into care.
