Approval has been given to a project to make urgent repairs to a former First World War hospital.

Experts say parts of Preston Hall, in the heart of Aylesford’s Royal British Legion Village, are at risk of crumbling and pose a risk to the public.

Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council this week granted permission for an upgrade to the stonework, which is thought to have deteriorated due to poor maintenance and weathering.

The Grade II listed hall, off London Road, was a home before being let to the Red Cross as a hospital for injured servicemen during the First World War.

From 1925, the building was used by the Royal British Legion and later integrated with an NHS hospital until 2012.

The land is now used as housing and by the Heart of Kent Hospice.

In a survey commissioned by landowner Weston Homes, chartered building surveyor Adam Wlodarczyk-Black, of Watts Group, suggested cordoning off some areas for fear of masonry falling from the building.