Sevenoaks business news
Sevenoaks business news, newest first: openings and closures, town centre changes, jobs and company filings across the district, from public records.
Top story
Sevenoaks new businesses: 57 registered in three weeks
57 companies took Sevenoaks addresses from 1 to 21 September, biotech to koi carp; a Swanley printer's liquidation and two HMRC petitions lead the closures.
Guides and practical pages
Parking
Parking in Sevenoaks: from £1.10 an hour, £5.30 all day
Every council car park and bay priced. The cheapest is St Johns at £1.10 an hour and £3.20 for four hours, and two council car parks cost nothing at all.
Christmas
Christmas Markets near Sevenoaks 2026: 4 Dates Confirmed
Christmas markets near Sevenoaks 2026: Hever's fair 6 November, Chiddingstone 21 November with £8 tickets on sale, lights switch-on 28 November.
Breakfast
Brunch in Sevenoaks: Who Opens Earliest, and What It Costs
A full breakfast for £12.50, coffee from 6am, and one much-recommended favourite now in liquidation. Verified Sevenoaks brunch times, prices and booking rules.
Parking
Free Parking in Sevenoaks: Two Car Parks Free All Week
Holmesdale Road and Holly Bush Recreation Ground are free every day, and the council lists them in no tariff. Every other free hour in town, checked.
Days Out
Garden centres near Sevenoaks: hours, cafes, dogs compared
Five garden centres within 15 minutes of Sevenoaks compared: Sunday hours, which one keeps dogs out (Polhill), and where to buy a real Christmas tree.
Christmas
Sevenoaks Christmas Lights Switch-On: Sat 28 November
The Mayor switches on the Sevenoaks lights at 4.30pm on Saturday 28 November. The High Street shuts from 1.30pm to 7pm, with rides, stalls and a grotto.
Latest stories
News
Sevenoaks business news: Bligh's Meadow relaunch, 57 firms
Bligh's Meadow has a new website and a new commercial contact, and the £2m business fund closed on 30 September. Plus 57 new firms and a pub wound up.
Seal
Pig & Pickle Seal Chart: pub company goes into liquidation
The company running the Pig & Pickle at Seal Chart went into liquidation on 11 September, nine months after the pub's December opening. What the notices say.
Data
Sevenoaks unemployment claims hit 1,675, a four-year high
August's claimant count hit 1,675, the highest since January 2022. Claims from 18 to 24 year olds are up 30 per cent in a year; under-22s up 42 per cent.
News
HMRC petition against Halstead firm: no winding-up order yet
Knockholt Properties of Halstead is still active after its 9 September HMRC winding-up hearing, with no order in The Gazette. Plus August's liquidations.
Council
Sevenoaks Shared Prosperity Fund: £2m ends, no successor
The £1.98m Shared Prosperity programme behind Sevenoaks business grants and free training closes on 30 September, and the council expects no replacement.
Westerham
JetMS Completions owed £6.15m, has £64,296 to pay it
The Biggin Hill firm's statement of affairs is public: £6.15m owed against £64,296 to pay it. Seventeen staff, HMRC and local suppliers are in the queue.
Food
Sevenoaks food hygiene: full July list shows a 1 and a 2
Late-published FSA data adds seven sub-5 scores to July, including a 1 on London Road and a 2 for a school caterer at Eynsford. August so far: eight 5s.
Data
Sevenoaks new businesses: 74 firms registered in August
74 companies took Sevenoaks addresses in August, from a padel venture to railway contractors; 20 share one Sundridge office. Who is new, and the trend.
Westerham
Waypoint Aerotec owes £486,584, has £11,443 to pay it
The Biggin Hill firm's statement of affairs is now public. Nine tenths of the debt is owed to its own group, and an HSBC bounce back loan is in the queue.
Food and Drink
Number Eight Sevenoaks: Café Royal chef cooks 23 September
Kevin Gratton of the Café Royal Grill cooks at Number Eight on Wednesday 23 September. It is £85 a head for four courses, Atul Kochhar on 18 November.
Westerham
JETMS Completions liquidation: Biggin Hill firms wound up
JETMS Completions and Waypoint Aerotec were wound up at a Teams meeting on 5 August, and joint liquidators are now in charge of both Biggin Hill firms.
Data
Sevenoaks unemployment claims hit 1,665, a 2022 high
July's count reached 1,665, the highest since January 2022. Claims from 18 to 24 year olds are up by a third in a year, while the 25 to 49 group has fallen.
Westerham
Biggin Hill aircraft firm JetMS heads into liquidation
JETMS Completions and Waypoint Aerotec, both at Biggin Hill, called creditors' meetings for 5 August. Accounts show 49 staff and £2.4m of net liabilities.
Swanley
Ming Foods Swanley placed in administration on 24 June
Ming Foods, the Chinese pastry maker at Upper Hockenden Farm, went into administration on 24 June, one of seven local firms in July's insolvency notices.
Food
Sevenoaks food hygiene: all 25 July inspections scored 5
Every food hygiene inspection published for the Sevenoaks district in July scored 5, the top rating. Across the register, 673 of 852 premises hold a 5.
Data
Out-of-work benefit claims in Sevenoaks district hit their highest level since January 2022
1,655 people in the Sevenoaks district claimed out-of-work benefits in June, 145 more than a year earlier. The 2.3 per cent rate is below Kent and Britain.
Council
Councillors approve the £40m Land East loan after a bid for more oversight is defeated
Councillors signed off a loan facility of up to £40m with Wates for the Land East scheme. An amendment to bring the final deal back to Council was defeated.
Council
Councillors decide tonight on the £40m loan for the Land East regeneration
Sevenoaks Full Council votes on 14 July on a loan of up to £40m for the Land East scheme: a leisure centre, homes and public realm built with Wates.
Council
Cabinet appoints Wates to deliver new Sevenoaks leisure centre and town-centre scheme
Cabinet has named Wates preferred contractor for the £138m Land East scheme: a new leisure centre, homes and a market hall. Full Council votes on 14 July.
Council
Land East Sevenoaks: Wates picked, £40m loan on table
Officers asked Cabinet to appoint Wates for the land east of Sevenoaks High Street and back a £40m loan for a new leisure centre, homes and public realm.