Controversial plans for a new community centre should prioritise facilities for residents over new housing, a survey of local people has found.

Campaigners from the Bockhanger and Bybrook Matters (BBM) group sought the views of almost 2,500 households in the two wards over plans for a replacement for the demolished Bockhanger Community Centre in Kennington.

Although Ashford Borough Council (ABC) has carried out two rounds of consultation over the scheme, many in the local area feel they are “not being listened to” when it comes to what should replace the previous facility.

Currently the most likely outcome appears to be a community space delivered in conjunction with an affordable housing-led solution financed by the council’s Housing Revenue Account (HRA).

But the BBM group says its survey shows that housing is not what residents want to see take priority in the plans.

While about 80% of respondents said it is ‘very important’ to have new community facilities on this site of the old centre, provision of affordable housing was either ‘unimportant’ or ‘very unimportant’ to more than 60% of those who responded to the survey.

Presenting the survey findings to an ABC cabinet meeting earlier this month, resident Alan Dean said: “There has been a general dissatisfaction within the community, within the wards, where people and residents feel they’re not being listened to or heard by the borough council.”

It cost ABC £150,000 to demolish the Bockhanger Community Centre, which had stood for more than 50 years and was once home to a nursery and library.

The decision to tear down the building without any plans to replace the facilities drew an angry backlash from people living in the area.

A petition, which was signed by more than 1,700 people, urged the council to commit to building a “bigger and better community centre of the highest quality”.

Cllr Diccon Spain (Lab) said: “Continuing in the current HRA only funded direction is not good enough and, based on previous hints from the council about what they think can be delivered this way, seems to be railroading the scheme towards delivering a couple of glorified shop units under some flats.

“If that happens, and all of us must work together to avoid this, residents will be justifiably angry, and more lasting and completely unnecessary damage will be done to this whole area of north Ashford.”

The cabinet resolved to note the findings from the council’s own consultation process, which has included surveys which have indicated concern about provision of affordable homes locally.

It also resolved to continue working in collaboration with Kennington Community Council on more detailed plans for the new facilities, which would then be put out again to consultation.