A second bid to transform a historic 131-year-old pub into a Domino's pizza takeaway has been withdrawn.

The George and Dragon has been sat on the corner of the junction between London Road and Swanscombe High Street since 1891.

The former Victorian coaching inn has a long and decorated history which in recent times had seen it named a local CAMRA pub of the year and even kickstart a successful local brewery.

But despite its illustrious reputation it has not welcomed in punters for a tidy ale since permanently shutting its doors in 2019 following the retirement of the then landlord and landlady.

An application was later made to the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC) to change its use to a food takeaway business with franchise chain Domino's Pizza poised to take over.

But the bid was refused in 2020 and an appeal against the decision refused by the Planning Inspectorate and the latest plans have been scrapped.

No reasons have been given for the decision and when asked by KentOnline, the company declined to comment.

Planners said the proposal would result in loss of a "community facility for non-community purposes" and deemed it an inappropriate location with insufficient parking.

Concerns were also flagged over the length of marketing exercises to explore the pub's continued use as a "community-led" facility.

However, Domino's bosses submitted a fresh application in June which again sought permission for the change of use.

It came fresh off the back of new updated market evidence after attempts to find a buyer for the property – valued at £550,000 – were said to have fallen flat.

The pub has been vacant since 2019 and has been on the market since November 2018.

In its revised planning application, the applicant said there was only "very limited interest" in re-using the site as a pub, and no realistic evidence for the site to be "reoccupied in community use".

It added the change to a pizza takeway would bring "significant economic benefits" for the local area, with the plans for the building resulting in the creation of a significant number of jobs for local people and improvements to the street scene.

However, in a response to the application, planners at Dartford council said that based on the lack of available evidence and local pubs it was not possible to conclude there is clear evidence the facility is not needed by the local community.

It also questioned whether the current market valuation of £550,000 remained valid given the current economic circumstances.

The re-emergence of the Domino's Pizza plans also sparked more than 30 comments on the EDC planning portal, with most voicing their opinion against the proposals.

The main reasons cited were traffic congestion, poor access and parking provision and the loss of a community facility.

Speaking in July, Kent historian Christoph Bull said: "I want the building to be used for something but I don't want it to be destroyed or developed into a takeaway.

"Swanscombe does not need more saturated fat in its blood stream than it already has."

Swanscombe Cllr Emma Ben Moussa (Lab) also submitted her views to planners, raising concerns over littering.

She added her preference would be for something that benefits the community, such as affordable housing, as opposed to "more unhealthy takeaways".

Domino's Pizza declined to comment on the withdrawal of the plans.