Gravesham is regenerating

Gravesham is a remarkably diverse area with a strong ethnic flavour and an enterprising mix of a rural and town centred business community. The area is moving apace with ongoing regeneration and has a healthy local business base comprising 3200 registered businesses of which 80 per cent employ less than 10 people. There is also a 650-member strong business support network offering regular workshops. Sitting alongside the smaller firms are sizeable national and international firms such as Comma Oil & Chemicals Ltd, Kimberly Clark, Rodenstock, and Britannia Refined Metals (part of Glencore). The River Thames plays an important role and enables Gravesham to enjoy a unique 11km waterfront with a long-standing maritime connection. The Port of London Authority's main offices are based in the town and much of the area's deep-water wharfage is used to transport commercial materials. A new pontoon off the Town Pier provides modern facilities to receive visiting leisure craft from London or those coming upriver from the North Sea and Continental Europe.  Direct High Speed 1 services from Gravesend Railway Station to London St Pancras bring Gravesend closer than any other Kent town to the Capital and further north by rail and with a journey time of 22 minutes, this is faster than areas in Zones 3 to 6 of the London underground system. There is also a regular Southeastern rail service to Charing Cross, Luton including the airport and down as far as the Channel ports of Dover and Ramsgate.