Ambitious plans to regenerate an area around a major railway station and create a new “civic heart” for Britain’s newest garden city have been approved.

The £200 million proposals, known as Ebbsfleet Central East, will see brownfield land surrounding Ebbsfleet International repurposed to create a new city-style centre.

Parking facilities will be relocated as a multi-storey structure nearby and the land transformed into a new business quarter, thousands of new homes, and fitness and wellbeing facilities.

It forms part of overarching plans being driven forward by Ebbsfleet Development Corporation (EDC) - the planning arm tasked with delivering the scheme for a “21st century garden city” with up to 15,000 new homes - and is backed by the government.

The plans are supported by an illustrative masterplan which includes 2,100 homes on the Central East site, of which 35% are designated as affordable housing, alongside 87,000 sq m of office space, retail and leisure facilities, new open spaces and connectivity improvements.

The outline planning application commits to the delivery of a GP healthcare facility and EDC says it will continue to work closely with NHS partners to deliver this as part of a world class “health and wellbeing hub”.

These facilities, together with space for business, education and research, will make up a health, education and innovation quarter.

Other potential uses on the site allow for co-living and student accommodation, public houses and drinking establishments, and theatres and cinemas.

According to documents submitted alongside the proposals, nearly £8 million could also be set aside for a contribution towards a new secondary school site, as well as a new facility for children with special educational needs.

Ebbsfleet Central East is split into two separate parcels – including Northfleet Rise and Station Gardens.

Station Gardens will host 1,155 homes, which will include 979 apartments and 176 houses, approximately 78,000 sq m of office space, as well as a hotel.

Meanwhile, Northfleet Rise will consist of 918 homes, of which 787 are apartments and 130 are houses.

The proposals do not include alterations to the station building itself, however some of the existing facilities including bus stops and the drop-off area will be relocated, alongside disabled parking.

The arrival at the station is seen as an important part of the scheme and the proposals seek to create a link between the station and the wider development using “active streets” with shops, cafés and restaurants leading to the concourse, as well as the new Station Gateway Square.

Cycling is also being promoted and as part of the proposed highway works an off-road cycle route is being provided along International Way to connect the station with the Ebbsfleet Gateway and Southfleet Road roundabout.

A pedestrian and cycle link is also proposed along the Fastrack bus link.

Ebbsfleet Central has been earmarked for development for a significant amount of time and was initially granted permission for new homes and commercial use way back in 2002.

Since then, however, the proposals have stalled and the site remains underutilised.

In 2019, EDC purchased the land to speed up its development process and since then the team has been working on new proposals.

Simon Dudley, chairman of the EDC board, called the approval of its outline application for the area an “important milestone”.

He said: “Ebbsfleet Central will be the heart of Ebbsfleet Garden City, capitalising on its unparalleled connectivity to deliver the next generation of high quality, flexible workspace, creating a new dynamic and innovative sub regional business hub integrated through well designed public realm and green spaces with vibrant, sustainable urban neighbourhoods and amenities to support a healthy, happy lifestyle.

“This important milestone represents a significant step and our continued commitment to create a vibrant, sustainable and well-connected community in the heart of Ebbsfleet.

“The development will bring much needed housing, infrastructure, services and amenities to the area, enhancing quality of life for current and future residents.

“We look forward to progressing with the next stage of the plans.”

The outline approval by the EDC planning committee sets out the parameters for building heights, density, green and blue infrastructure and the mix of uses prior to construction by third party developers.

To see more planning applications and other public notices for your area, click here.

Further detail will be brought forward for approval as part of future masterplans and reserved matters applications.

Plans for a “garden city” at Ebbsfleet were first approved in 2014 by the government to deliver up to 15,000 homes.

The original masterplan for the new settlement in the Ebbsfleet Valley planned for 10,964 homes by April 2026.

However, as of February 2024, 4,000 have been built and under Dartford council’s local plan, there will be only 8,200 there by 2037.