Image source, Remco van SchellenImage caption, Kent Police says it was warned about possible protests in Dover the day before they took place, but information "was not fully assessed"
Kent Police has said it was made aware of the potential for protests in Dover the day before they took place but information "was not fully assessed".
A large group of protesters dressed in black and wearing balaclavas blocked access to the Port of Dover on Saturday for several hours, with witnesses hearing chants of "stop the boats".
Kent Police had said it did not know about the demonstration in advance, leading to accusations of a failure in intelligence-gathering.
But the force said a review had found it received non-emergency information late on Friday which may have allowed it to "consider its resourcing", but did not share what it was told. The Home Office has declined to comment.
A force spokesperson said: "The protest organisers adopted a different approach to previous protests, and as part of our commitment to public safety we have examined our decision-making to identify any lessons, to ensure we are well prepared for future events organised in a similar way.
"During that initial review, we found the force had received non-emergency information late on Friday evening that a protest could take place in the town the following day.
"This information was not fully assessed. If it was, it may have allowed the force to consider its resourcing."
Image source, Remco van SchellenImage caption, Protesters blocked the port from 07:00 BST for several hours on Saturday
Kent Police previously said the protest was "spontaneous", and it did not have any intelligence to suggest a demonstration was going to happen.
Dover District Council deputy keader Edward Biggs called the announcement from Kent Police "very worrying" and "really poor".
He added: "It's very disappointing. We rely on the police providing us information so that we can inform the community and take whatever steps we need to take."
Kent Police said the information it received "would not have prevented the lawful protest from taking place, nor the disruption experienced by the town, port and wider community".
It said it had asked the College of Policing to independently examine the processes involved, so it can learn from its response.
Kent's police and crime commissioner Matthew Scott said he welcomed the independent learning review by the College of Policing.
He said he had asked that it examined both how information is triaged and the communications strategy the force deployed in response to the event.
He said he would ensure the chief constable was held to account with regards to any recommendations made.
He added: "It is essential that we understand how this happened, and that lessons are learnt.
"This is separate to the response of officers, staff and specials on the ground, who did the best they could, in the circumstances they were presented with, to bring the disruption to an end as soon as they did."
Demonstrators told the BBC on Saturday they did not want to talk to the media, although one said "send them back" and another said "stop the boats" when approached.
No arrests were made on the day of the protest, police said previously.
Although no boats arrived on Saturday, eight did on Sunday, carrying 625 people, Home Office figures revealed.
The day after the protest, several officers were injured and vehicles damaged in Portsmouth at a demonstration sparked by the arrival of 120 migrants.
Both protests have been linked to Danny Thomas, a long-term campaigner against migrants more commonly known as Danny Tommo.
Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, external, on X, external, on Instagram, external and listen to BBC Radio Kent on Sounds. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk, external or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.
What we know about anti-migrant protests and organiser Danny Thomas
Small boat protest explained: How a Channel crossing sparked unrest
