A councillor says a historic castle plays no part in the appeal of a Maidstone village because of the constant traffic it brings - in defiance of a survey suggesting it boosts house prices in the area.

Cllr Gill Fort made the comments in response to research suggesting homes are a third more expensive in the village of Leeds than the Maidstone average, due to their proximity to Leeds Castle.

The average house price in the borough of Maidstone is £303,416.

In Leeds, the average home in the postcode costs £407,500, an increase of 34%.

The research by Homedit, a home and design blog, found 14 out of 20 villages near stately homes across the UK had higher property values than the borough average. Leeds came eighth on the list.

Cllr Fort, ward councillor for the area and also a Leeds resident, feels the area is only blighted by the traffic chaos it experiences.

She said: "I don't think Leeds Castle has any bearing on property prices in the village, in fact I think it’s more of an inconvenience.

"We have very little car parking spaces as it is and what we end up having is visitors to Leeds Castle who don't want to pay the entry fee, use the village car park and it means residents cannot park near their homes.

"It's lovely to have the castle but there is no added benefit to the village.

"We don't get any discount to use it, and we are a small village that has a terrible traffic and parking problem which is exasperated by the castle, especially on event nights."

Cllr Fort feels its the pubs, rural walks, social clubs and community spirit that really attracts people to the village and makes it a great place to live.

She added: "A relief road is the only solution and that would make it more desirable. I think having Leeds Castle would add value then."

The issue of a relief road has been a long running debate for at least 30 years.

The idea is to provide a new road to link through from the A274 Sutton Road to the A20 Ashford Road - and on to the M20 - at the same time sparing Leeds village of large volumes of traffic on unsuitable roads, and relieving congestion in south Maidstone.

A problem is the project has an estimated cost of £80m.

There has also been something of borough/county divide on the issue - with the two authorities taking differing views.

In October last year there was renewed optimism when Cllr Michael Payne (Con), the Kent County Council (KCC) cabinet member for highways, wrote an open letter to the former Maidstone Borough Council leader Cllr Martin Cox, suggesting he was keen to see the scheme go ahead if cash were found.

But the county's projects manger Russell Boorman made it clear to councillors that "KCC currently will not progress this as a stand-alone project."

The council would first have to grant permission for thousands more homes along the Leeds corridor.

KCC wants Maidstone council to commit to building enough new homes to get cash to pay for the relief road. But Maidstone council says it can't commit to more homes unless there is the guarantee of a bypass.

Leeds Castle was built in 1119 by a Norman baron during the reign of William the Conqueror’s son Henry I.

It has been the private property of six of England’s medieval queens and is one of the most visited historic buildings in Britain.

Alex Knight from Knight Edmonds Estate agents in Maidstone said the reason the homes might have a higher value in Leeds is more likely because of the amount of period properties, and not because of the castle.

Mr Knight said: "Properties near stately homes tend to be in more remote areas and those in rural settings tend to achieve higher prices.

"Another thing you have to consider is that so many of the properties in Leeds are period buildings which achieve a premium price on their own.

"Leeds does have modern properties too, but a three bedroom semi-detached in the village will be no different to a three bed semi in Allington or Loose.

"A lot of the properties will be a lot more interesting than ones you’d find elsewhere in Maidstone because of the area's history, but I wouldn’t say house prices are higher because of the castle, I'd say they’re higher because of the types of houses there are.

"But you could argue that the village has its character because of the castle. If the castle wasn’t there, the period properties wouldn't be there so it’s a full circle."

A spokesman for the castle, said: "Leeds Castle is a beautiful heritage asset that provides green space and beauty for the local community, free of charge through the public footpaths that cross the estate.

"The castle makes a huge contribution to the local and regional economy, providing employment, purchasing from local suppliers and protecting the 900-year-old castle and estate for future generations to enjoy.

"The annual cost of this is enormous and Leeds Castle is an independent charity that does not receive public funding.

"We welcome the support of our local communities and plan to offer a discounted annual ticket for residents of Leeds and Broomfield available to buy only in January 2022. "

In 2015, MP Helen Whately said the historic castle was a prime reason why a huge warehouse development in Hollingbourne should not be given the go ahead.

She was concerned about the detrimental effect the Waterside Park scheme would have on Leeds Castle and the knock-on effect that it would have on other businesses and employment in Maidstone.

In 2014 plans were rejected by Maidstone council and in summer 2015, Waterside Park was defeated after being considered at a planning inquiry. The Gallagher Group was behind the scheme.

But, in March, developers Clearbell secured planning permission from Maidstone council to build a £47million industrial estate nextdoor to where Waterside Park was proposed.

It aims to provide 489,000 sq ft of mixed-use space for local businesses.

Construction of the site infrastructure and landscaping is expected to start later this year.

At the top of the Homedit study was Kenwood House in Camden. The average home in the borough costs £814,864.

Next to the stately London property, homes were valued at £8,650,000, a staggering 962% more.

It also found country house Knole could potentially add the ninth greatest value to properties that share the same postcode.

Now owned by the National Trust, the average price for properties on the same postcode is £612,500, which is £153,994 higher than the average price of properties in Sevenoaks.

Head to our business page for all the latest news about business in Kent

Read more: All the latest news from Maidstone