Work is finally set to start on the long-awaited £10.5 million renovation of an 800-year-old listed building.

Contractors are due to begin working on the Maison Dieu in Dover on October 3 as part of a regeneration project aimed at breathing new life into the town centre.

The lottery-funded revamp of the Grade I listed building will see it permanently opened to the public for the first time, with redundant spaces brought back into commercial use.

Preparations for the restoration work involved removing and storing some 40,000 historical artefacts, including paintings, military colours, and arms and armour from the Royal Armouries.

The restoration work is due to be completed in the summer of 2024.

Cllr Trevor Bartlett, leader of Dover District Council (DDC), said: "We're delighted to see work under way on the council's biggest heritage restoration project to date.

"The project will bring the Maison Dieu to life as one of the most significant civic heritage buildings in the country, ensuring that it plays a key role in the future of Dover as a heritage, cultural and community venue.

"Bringing a restoration project of this size to reality has taken a huge amount of work by specialist architects and conservators, and the in-house team at DDC, and would not have been possible without the incredible support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Wolfson Foundation, Dover Society and Dover Town Council."

The Maison Dieu, or House of God, was founded in the early 1200s by Hubert de Burgh and passed to King Henry III in 1227, when the earliest surviving part of the building, the Chapel, was consecrated in his presence.

It was built as a place of hospitality for pilgrims journeying from continental Europe to Canterbury Cathedral to visit the shrine of Thomas Becket.

Following the Dissolution in the 16th century, the Maison Dieu was subsequently used as a victualling yard supplying ships of the Royal Navy.

In the mid-19th century, the prominent Victorian architect Ambrose Poynter extensively restored the building, aided by the up-and-coming Gothic revival architect William Burges.

Burges later went on to further remodel the building and designed an assembly hall and civic offices, including a range of bespoke furniture and interior schemes.

The Maison Dieu is the only civic commission by William Burges, and the only intact building in England still containing his decorative scheme, furniture, and fittings.

Coniston Ltd, of Dartford, a specialist in conserving and restoring of heritage and listed buildings, has been appointed by DDC to lead the project.

It has previously worked on historic buildings including Canterbury Cathedral, the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich, The British Museum, The Tower of London, Sheerness Dockyard Church, Somerset House, and the Victoria & Albert Museum.

The work in Dover includes restoring Victorian decor, improving access throughout the building, creating a new visitor entrance and using redundant spaces such as for a holiday let and café.

A number of redundant spaces will be brought back into use as a result, including the Mayor's Parlour, which will become a holiday let in conjunction with The Landmark Trust.

There will also a new café in the space once occupied by Victorian gaol cells.