An eyesore arcade that has stood empty on a Kent seafront for years is finally set to be demolished.

The old Tivoli amusements site in Central Parade, Herne Bay, has been an ugly scar on the town's landscape for about 15 years - with recent plans to regenerate it being afflicted by delays.

But now bosses of Canterbury City Council, which owns the building, say they have received almost £555,000 in government cash to push ahead with tearing down the derelict structure.

The authority plans to begin the work next spring, once it has secured the services of a contractor.

Reacting to the news, senior councillor Barbara Flack (Con) said: "We recognise this area has been an eyesore desperately in need to be tackled and, having bought the land some years ago, we welcome this cash to help get this site cleared.

“Doing so brings us much, much closer to an exciting new beginning for this part of the town."

Planning permission has already been given to proposals to erect 33 homes and three shops on the plot, which includes the Beach Street car park behind.

The city council bought the Tivoli building four years ago for £1.1 million, having hoped to carry out the scheme itself.

But as potential construction costs spiralled it changed tack last year.

The site was subsequently put on the market by Cradick Retail, attracting a number of bids from potential development partners and buyers.

A decision on its future has not yet been made, but council officials insist the government funding makes "a future scheme more viable and allows us to keep our future options open".

"The planned development will bring with it a new pedestrian route linking the town’s seafront and shopping streets, along with new homes and commercial space that will provide jobs," Cllr Flack added.

The cash is from the the Brownfield Land Release Fund 2, which is available to all English councils.

It will be used to demolish the existing buildings on the Beach Street and Tivoli site and prepare the area to be built on in the future.

Cllr Flack believes this "complements perfectly" the authority's recent £14.6 million bid to the government’s Levelling Up Fund.

It is hoped the eight-figure sum will boost the town's music offering by breathing new life into the King’s Hall and bandstand, "while linking up areas to help people walk and cycle more easily".