Long-harboured plans to build a new reservoir in the Kent countryside are at last moving forward, with the four-mile site set to become an attraction.

Talk of flooding a sprawling expanse of farmland in Broad Oak, near Canterbury, has rumbled on for decades - but the scheme has never come to fruition.

Now, however, South East Water (SEW) has revealed it hopes to launch the reservoir by either 2033 or 2036 in papers outlining its vision for Kent.

Documents state: “The reservoir is necessary to meet the growing demand as well as allowing us to reduce our abstractions on environmentally sensitive groundwater sources in the area.”

New coloured sketches show the size of the site - which is set to have a maximum capacity of 5 billion litres.

It will be filled with water abstracted from the River Stour and rain collected over time.

A new treatment works is also planned. It will turn the liquid in the reservoir into drinking water, before pumping it into the network.

About 22 million litres will be exported each day. SEW is also poised to open an education centre and turn the reservoir into an attraction.

Footpaths and cycle paths, an art trail and picnic areas will all be created at the site in a bid to transform it into a destination for families to enjoy.

A public consultation on the reservoir plans is now open, allowing residents to have their say on the project.

Speaking to KentOnline earlier this year, SEW’s head of water resources, Lee Dance, said: “We’re aware of the need to build a new reservoir in Kent and plans have been in the pipeline to build a new reservoir at Broad Oak since the 1970s.

“We already own the required land and have been undertaking environmental and engineering studies in recent years.”

Set to be of a similar size to the 180-acre Ardingly Reservoir in West Sussex, Broad Oak will be one of the largest in the region.

With a capacity of five billion litres, it will be able to cater for about 40,000 homes.

Bewl Water, near Tunbridge Wells, is the biggest reservoir in the south east and holds as much as 31 billion litres.

The Broad Oak scheme is part of SEW’s plan to invest £2.2 billion over the next 50 years for new infrastructure in the region.

Elsewhere in the Canterbury district, Reculver is set to get a desalination plant.

The centre will remove salt from seawater and be turned into fresh drinking water.

However, the project is likely to be operational by 2045.