The area around Swanley Square shopping centre could soon be transformed with 340 new homes.

A planning application submitted to Sevenoaks council outlines the drastic changes being made to redevelop the facility with housing, retail space and restaurants.

The area around the existing Swanley Square shopping centre could be redeveloped to introduce new shops, cafes and restaurants alongside 340 new homes in high-quality managed apartment buildings.

Owners of the centre, U+I put forward proposals to build seven new blocks of apartments ranging from three to 13 storeys high.

A spokeswoman from U+I has said the company do not want to demolish the shopping centre but compliment what is already in place and ensured the town's GP surgery will remain.

Blocks 1, 2 and 4 will be transformed into 247 homes, a small shopping facility and a multi-storey car park.

Blocks 3, 5, 6 and 7 will be turned into four new buildings which will serve as a further 93 homes as well as a community area.

The design is intended to work with the current retail centre and with proposals for a Master Vision for Swanley and Hextable and is expected to create up to 290 new jobs.

Richard Upton of U+I said: “The aspirations of Swanley Town Council, Sevenoaks District Council and U+I are aligned in the objective of making Swanley town centre a vibrant, friendly environment that drives socio-economic growth and benefits local residents, local businesses and the town as a whole.

“The submission of this application is a milestone for both U+I and Swanley and represents a significant investment which is set to transform the town centre. We are looking forward to working with Swanley Town Council, Sevenoaks District Council, our tenants in the existing shopping centre and local residents to develop a scheme that makes Swanley proud.”

A decision is expected to be reached by November.