Work on the new £7.5 million green-energy visitor centre at Betteshanger Country Park is now under way.

The centre will include the Kent Mining Museum and Green Energy Centre as well as a restaurant, cycling centre, retail, conference and event facilities, and improved outdoor play equipment.

This is the first phase of the Betteshanger Sustainable Parks development, a project led and managed by the Hadlow Group.

Kent-based Marpaul has been named as the managing contractor and the tendering process is now under way, with many local companies expected to secure contracts.

Mark Lumsdon-Taylor, group director of finance and resources at Hadlow Group, said: “This marks the next exciting phase of our plans to create an eco-tourism and leisure destination for east Kent as part of the wider Betteshanger Sustainable Parks project, and is the culmination of seven years of development and commitment.

“At the heart of the project is a celebration of the area’s mining community, making the connection between our energy needs of the past and the role of green energy production in the future.

“Using local suppliers, contractors and consultants means we maximise the impact of the project for the local economy and keep the environmental footprint of the project as small as possible, which is fundamental to what we are seeking to achieve at
Betteshanger Sustainable Parks.” The visitor centre will generate energy through a biomass boiler and solar panels.

Richard Morsley, director at Betteshanger Sustainable Parks, said: “The park will remain open throughout the works but we ask our visitors to bear with us while we improve the facilities.

“Hoardings have been erected to ensure the public’s safety during the construction process and the current visitor centre will remain open until the new one is completed. This is a big project and there will be some disruption but hopefully fewer visitors will be affected as we are beginning work in the winter months.”

For more information visit www.betteshangercountrypark.co.uk