Twenty Kent sites have been added to a list of buildings at risk of decay.

The buildings - all places of worship - include 13 listed as grade I, four as grade II* and three grade II.

The list, published today by English Heritage, includes St Dunstan's in Cranbrook, which has suffered vandalism; St Peter and St Paul in Ospringe, which is slowly decaying and suffering from damp and the Church of St Peter in Folkestone, which is deteriorating due to its stonework being in poor condition and its roof needing repairs.

But, on the plus side, three churches have been removed from the register - the Church of St Mary in Sundridge, the Church of St Mary in Westwell and the Church of St Mary and St Eanswythe in Folkestone.

A prehistoric site near College Farm, Birchington, has also been removed from the register this year. It comes after a nearby farmer agreed to change the method of ploughing across the area.

Another archaeological site making good progress in Kent is Baker’s Hole Palaeolithic site at Ebbsfleet where stone tools, mammoth teeth and other fossils dating back 250,000 years have been discovered.

It was added to the register last year because of damage caused by thick scrub and animal burrowing to the sensitive archaeological layers beneath.

The scrub has now been cleared from those parts of the site most at risk by the owners - under advice from English Heritage and Natural England.

Following the clearance, important archaeological investigations have taken place which will help to guide the future management of the site and, ultimately, its removal from the Register.

Dr Andy Brown, Planning and Conservation Director for English Heritage in the South East said: "We’ve seen great progress this year at important sites like Pelham Arcade in Hastings and Margate Dreamland, but there’s still a lot for us and our partners to do in order to preserve the historic buildings and places in the South East for future generations.

"We are pleased to say, however, that we have had several successes in removing historic sites from the Register this year as we and our many partners take care to keep attention focussed on heritage at risk."

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