A busy crash-hit junction near a school is set to be redesigned after funding for improvements was confirmed.

The “dangerous” Cheriton Road and Cherry Garden Avenue junction in Cheriton, near Folkestone, has been identified as a “crash cluster site” by highway bosses.

Kent County Council (KCC) is looking to address incidents at the intersection and is in the early stages of design and feasibility work.

There have been 11 recorded crashes at the site in the space of four years between 2018 and 2022 - three of which were ‘serious incidents’, according to crash data website CrashMap.

Cllr Polly Blakemore (Green) told KentOnline she has seen evidence of “frequent incidents” at the junction and is calling for urgent changes to be made.

“I think it needs to be straightened out,” said the Cheriton ward representative at Folkestone and Hythe District Council.

“If you're coming up Cherry Garden Lane and going over to Beachborough Road, you have to do a bit of a shimmy over to one side. the visibility is poor and traffic is often huffing around in the middle waiting to turn.

“As it's just a couple of minutes away from a school, this adds to the urgency to get something sorted.

“I certainly see the evidence that there are frequent incidents there and something needs to be done sooner rather than later.”

The junction is a stone's throw away from the Harvey Grammar School - less than 150 yards down the road.

In 2020, a woman was taken to hospital after a car crashed into two pedestrians.

And in a separate incident earlier that year, an “almighty bang” was heard after a five-car smash at the junction.

Police blocked the scene of the collision and four ambulances were also present, with paramedics assessing people by the roadside.

Several people were taken to hospital.

Dates for the work to start on the junction and when initial proposals will come forward have not yet been announced.

It is not confirmed how much money will be invested in the proposed improvements.

But Mark Hourahane, vice-chairman of the New Folkestone Society, believes the junction is “fine” as it is.

He added: “People's driving needs to improve if they're having accidents at a clearly marked crossroads.

“Where there will be chaos, and is already at peak times, is the backing up of traffic due to the ludicrous Active Travel Scheme reducing traffic to one lane outside the Harvey Grammar.

“Cars are backing up and getting stuck over the junction at Cherry Garden Avenue.

“Drivers should be stopping (on a green light) to check that the road ahead is clear, but this is unnatural and people don't do it, especially when they haven't installed signs to warn you of a new road layout.”

Work continues to implement the new cycle route running from Radnor Park to the Harvey Grammar School.

The KCC-led project aims to make it safer to walk, wheel and cycle by creating improvements suitable for a range of users.

It includes the addition of bike lanes on both sides of the road between Cherry Garden Avenue and Radnor Park.

Once complete, it will include changes to the junction layouts at Cornwallis Avenue, Julian Road and Radnor Park West and a pedestrian crossing outside Morrisons.