Plans to convert Ashford’s former Post Office into a shared living space with 33 bedrooms and two commercial units have been submitted.

The proposals have been put forward by Rooms in Kent, a company that provides communal living spaces in Ashford, Maidstone and Rochester.

It hopes to convert the empty building - which is not listed - into six units each with shared kitchen, living and dining areas, along with laundry and bathroom facilities.

Four of the units would have between seven and 11 bedrooms each bringing the total number of rooms to 33, the majority of which would be double rooms with en-suites.

The other two units on the ground floor would be for commercial use, possibly one for public use, but details on this are not yet clear.

The proposal – submitted to Ashford Borough Council – also looks to add an extension to the second floor which would contain five of the bedrooms.

The building, which is next to County Square, already has a courtyard area which it hopes to keep while turning a currently unused first floor flat roof into a private paved terrace.

While the development is ‘car free’, meaning no parking will be available, 34 bicycle spaces in the secure courtyard are on the cards.

The main entrance would be via the old Post Office doors, opposite Wimpy.

A second entrance would be from Tufton Street, but through a gated entrance into the courtyard.

A third entrance via a new covered staircase replacing the metal fire escape connecting the ground floor to the first floor is proposed.

The Post Office opened in Tufton Street in 1926 before moving to WHSmith in the high street in March 2019.

Before then, it was in neighbouring Bank Street.

It was home to the telephone exchange for many years before it moved to a purpose-built site in Regents Place in 1963.

The Victorian front of the building was built in 1899.

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