Kent Street

Street guide, Portsea

Kent Street is a short residential and commercial street in the Queen Street area of Portsea. Like many streets in the district, it was originally lined with terraced housing built for the families of dockyard workers during the nineteenth century. The street suffered heavy damage during the 1941 Blitz and was largely rebuilt in the post-war period. Today it contains a mixture of housing and small commercial premises. The street connects to Queen Street and provides access to the surrounding residential blocks. Kent Street's modest present character belies its past as part of a tightly packed, densely populated working-class neighbourhood that was home to a vibrant community of naval and dockyard families. The University of Portsmouth's expanding presence in this part of Portsea has brought some changes, with student accommodation and related facilities now nearby.