A developer is set to break ground in their latest move to revamp an abandoned Christian holiday camp into a £21 million retirement village.

McGroff Group plans to overhaul the sprawling and once-thriving Herne Bay Court complex, complete with a striking mansion, into a care home complete with its own restaurant and bungalows.

The four-acre landmark off Parsonage Road once hosted tens of thousands of guests for over 60 years within its expansive space, swimming pool and tennis courts.

Abandoned in 2008, the site became a hotspot for parties and vandalism, as teens climbed over low walls and gaps in fences.

But work to revitalise the land with a care home, 49 bungalows and 72 flats is set to start “imminently”.

Original plans to include a wellness centre and clubhouse will no loner go ahead, it is understood.

Manchester-based McGroff Group said in a statement today: “With a combined build contract of circa £21million, we will now transform the land into a stunning development, retaining part of the existing structure and restoring the façade, bringing a historic part of Herne Bay back to life.

“This will be combined with the new build, creating a carefully considered, aesthetically attractive scheme.”

The firm says it will take approximately two years to complete the first part of the scheme, and the planned apartment building will come later.

Approximately 100 jobs will also be created by the care home once it is open and fully operational, McGroff says.

The bungalows will be sold privately and aimed at those over 55.

New Care will run the care home, which will cater to residential and dementia patients.

Chris McGoff, director at the McGoff Group, added: “We are thrilled to have acquired this land, bringing the Group’s exceptional development design to Kent.

“We are renowned for our residential schemes, all of which deliver luxury homes with additional elements in areas where people want to live, which is exactly what we have planned for Herne Bay.

“Furthermore, the care home will be the first in the South for New Care, who already have 15 well-established and highly regarded care facilities across the North West, Midlands and Yorkshire.”

“Work on site is due to start imminently, with the McGoff Group also planning a second phase of the development, which will include 72 apartments, soon.”

The main building is a mansion and will be partially demolished and extended ahead of its conversion into a care home.

The green light was given for the development in December 2022 after planning officers urged councillors to approve it.

First known as Parsonage House, the site was built in 1896.

It was later home to an engineering college before being occupied by a succession of military units during the Second World War.

Shortly after changing hands in 1948, the plot was turned into the religious conference and holiday centre, known as Herne Bay Court Christian Centre.