A new health hub for Swanley is a step closer to reality following a land-purchase agreement.

Swanley Town Council says it has negotiated with the landowners, London Cambridge Properties (LCP), to purchase the car park surrounding the Oaks Surgery - making it theoreticaly possible to move forward with plans for the new hub on the site.

The council has also applied to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities -formerly the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government - for Public Works Loan Board funding of £1.55 million for the project.

A statement from the council said it had been lobbying for a health hub and working with a range of stakeholders to deliver the plan over a number of years.

It added: "A health hub will bring a range of health services together under one roof, meaning patients no longer have to travel to different sites to receive basic care.

"It is expected that the Oaks and Cedars Surgeries will join the new medical hub (remaining separate surgeries), which will also be scaled up to better facilitate the growing and aging population, as well as offering accessible facilities for a range of patients with different health needs."

Swanley Mayor Cllr Paul Darrington said the town was "in desperate need for a larger medical presence", adding: "Should the funding application be successful, this land purchase will unlock the potential of building a new medical hub for Swanley.

"The Town Council has spoken to the surgeries and NHS England, and we are all equally excited about this development."

The Oaks Surgery and NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group have been approached for further comment.