Council flats suffering from damp patches and broken windows are to be given a significant make-over.

The 20 apartments contained within Granada House at the foot of Gabriel's Hill in Maidstone - and the shops below - were bought by Maidstone council in 2016, in readiness for a planned expansion to The Mall shopping centre, but that expansion never happened.

Since then, the flats have received no maintenance other than reactive repairs and are now in a poor state. The council describes them as having ill-fitting windows and broken panes, damp stained ceilings and heating systems dating from the 1960s.

The council fears they would now fail the Government's Decent Homes Standard, which could make it liable to prosecution when the standard is made a legal requirement soon.

The flats have now been vacated, with the tenants given six months to move out, ahead of the refurbishment.

The renovation will include a new roof, new windows, re-wiring and the installation of an all electric heating system and electric shower.

Doing away with the existing gas boilers is part of the borough's aim to work towards a carbon-neutral target.

The council paid £3.5m for the art-deco style building and deemed the flats to have represented about half the costs, ie £1.75m (or £87,500 each).

Because of their poor condition, the council had been letting the properties at only £566 a month, giving an annual income of £136,000.

After the refurbishment, it expects to be able to increase the rent to £820pcm.

There are no works proposed to the commercial units on the ground floor.

The cost of the refurbishment work is not being revealed, but the proposal was unanimously approved by members of the council's executive committee meeting on Wednesday21, with council leader David Burton (Con) declaring: "Good, let's get on with it!"