A shopping centre's £60m extension could be turned into 200 homes as bosses admit the closure-hit development is "failing".

Owners of Ashford's County Square have put the site forward in a planning process led by the borough council to identify suitable building plots.

The 19,000 sq m area, which was completed in 2008, has been hit by the loss of Debenhams, River Island and H&M in recent years.

It has now been included in Ashford Borough Council's "call for sites" - an invitation to developers and landowners to submit plots for inclusion in the authority’s new Local Plan, which sets out where homes could be built in the borough up to 2041.

All of the extension has been put forward, including the Next and New Look units which currently remain open, and the former Debenhams which goes across three storeys.

It is unclear exactly what the scheme will involve, but Q+A Planning Ltd, which has put together the plan on behalf of the site’s owners, says it is “being promoted for a mixed-use development” that would take three years to complete.

The upper floors are expected to be turned into housing, while the bottom floor - which includes a number of units that have never been occupied - would still be a retail space.

In its submission to ABC, Q+A Planning Ltd admits the extension is a “failing element” and says the site would be available for development “within zero to five years”.

If the scheme goes ahead, Next, New Look, A. Simmonds jewellers, Burger King and Chill Time Milkshake Bar would all need to move to different units.

For A. Simmonds, it would mean the business will have to move to a new unit within the centre for a second time.

The shop was previously in the original part of the centre, but switched to the former Jane Norman unit in the extension in 2018.

Owner Peter Fry said: “I'm disappointed because we have been in this unit for six years and we are almost certainly going to have to start again.

“But I want our customers to know we will not be closing, we will move within the centre if we can.

“We would like to encourage more businesses in here but we know that is not going to happen. Even places like Canterbury are struggling.

“I hope the council won't want to lose the shopping centre.

“But Debenhams has left a big hole in every town so we are never going to get the centre back to how it was.

“In business terms, you can see why they are doing it and I hope it will make the centre the success everyone wants it to be.”

In a statement, London-based real estate investment consultants Landswood de Coy, which is working on behalf of the County Square owners, says part of the extension will soon be cordoned off for repairs, but shoppers will still be able to access the units trading there.

Spokesman Omid Rezaei said bosses are “looking ahead at potential options” by including the centre in the “call for sites”.

Last month, a survey carried out by MP Damian Green found how one in three Ashford residents want Primark to join the town, with many seeing the former Debenhams unit as the perfect place for it.

“The recent local survey highlighted what the Ashford residents and County Square owners would like but these will be longer-term projects,” Mr Rezaei said.

“At the moment, there are no planned closures and all we will be doing soon is cordoning off part of phase two (not all) for repairs.

“Any potential redevelopment will obviously look at local needs and planning requirements, so a mixture of residential, retail, food and leisure would make sense, but will obviously retain as many of the retailers and operators as possible while adding to the mix.”

Earlier this week, KentOnline asked shoppers for their views on the plans.

Edward Stickels, from Charing, says he feels more needs to be done to attract business to the town.

“The whole town is going downhill, it's dying on its feet,” the 77-year-old said.

“We need a hell of a lot more shops so I hope the council says no to the proposals.

“They should put the rents down, that would get more businesses in.

“I don't drive so I have to come into Ashford on a bus. I can't go to Maidstone or Canterbury for my shopping, I want to come to my local town.

“Where are the people who move here going to do their shopping?”

Willesborough resident Robin Hills, who visits County Square once a week to meet friends, says Ashford already has enough flats and would like to see more shops in the extension.

“It would be good to see the shopping centre back as it used to be,” the 76-year-old said.

“I think we have enough flats at the moment so they should invest in this extension a bit more.”

Women's clothing store Select was the latest store to leave the extension after the brand announced its departure from Ashford in February.

In the original part of the centre, Peacocks closed for good yesterday (Saturday), dealing another blow to the town.

Last autumn, ABC invited people to put forward sites they own, or to suggest land that may potentially be available, for inclusion in the new Local Plan.

More than 300 plots were submitted and planning officers will now start assessing each one, including County Square, to look at their “suitability, availability and achievability” before any decisions are made.

Once all sites have been assessed, the authority’s preferred options will be published for public consultation.

ABC cabinet member Cllr Linda Harman (Ash Ind) said: “We had a really positive response to its ‘call for sites’ exercise, which is the first stage in the process for preparing the Local Plan 2041.

“Now that we have a list of potential development sites put forward, we will begin assessing each one.

“Throughout the process of drafting our Local Plan 2041, the needs of our borough and its residents remains paramount.

“There will be extensive consultation at every stage of the process to ensure future development is well planned to create great places and strong communities.”

In a further statement, ABC said the list of submitted sites is published for “information purposes only”.

Find out about planning applications that affect you by visiting the Public Notice Portal.

“No decision has been taken as to which sites will form part of a future strategy for the borough,” said the authority, which is now run by an Ashford Independent/Green Party coalition.

“Being put forward for consideration for development does not mean a site will be allocated in the Local Plan, nor does it determine whether planning permission should be granted on any subsequent planning application that may be submitted.”

The ABC-owned Park Mall shopping centre, which sits opposite County Square, is also set to become a residential development, but no details or timescales have been confirmed.