A minister has visited Gravesend to see for himself how work is progressing to rebuild the run-down Christian Fields estate.

But as South East regional minister Jonathan Shaw spoke to residents about their new homes, some walls and fences had already been daubed with grafitti and litter strewn in the streets.

And he visited rows of boarded-up “ghost” streets, such as Ferguson Avenue, which are waiting to be bulldozed in the next stage of the development.

Mr Shaw met residents already in new homes who were involved in the planning and design of the estate on his visit on Tuesday.

He said: “This regeneration is a real success story. The residents at Christian Fields were living in housing which had become sub-standard and not fit for purpose.

“By involving residents in the regeneration and planning of the new homes, the heart of the community has been restored and it’s becoming a vibrant place to live.

“Importantly, the new development has helped result in a massive decrease in anti-social behaviour.”

A survey carried out in late 2007 showed that 17 per cent of residents on the estate felt unsafe – down from 47 per cent in 2003.

The estate is being regenerated by housing association Moat, Countryside Properties and the Homes and Communities Agency.

The original 208 properties will eventually be replaced with a total of 426, a mixture of social housing and affordable homes.

Christian Fields was built as post-war housing in the 1940s, but was in serious decline by the 1990s.

The properties were said to be past “economic repair” and the estate was selected for the £75m rebuild in March 2006.