A court that hears civil matters and family cases has moved to a council's headquarters – and is set to be officially opened next week.

Medway County and Family Court has relocated to Medway Council's offices at Gun Wharf in Chatham.

It vacated its old home at Anchorage House in the High Street last summer when the lease expired and the private landlord opted to develop the site, which is now being considered as somewhere to provide accommodation to asylum seekers.

For the interim period, hearings were held at the Holiday Inn near Rochester Airport while the riverfront building was adapted for court proceedings.

The new base in Dock Road comprises six hearing rooms, six judicial chambers, an advocate's room and consultation rooms.

Access is via a separate entrance to the main reception area of the council offices.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman confirmed: "Medway Civil and Family have now moved to their new premises and have been sitting there since November 24."

An official opening ceremony is due to take place on Tuesday, December 13.

Council bosses previously said that since lockdown – with 75% of staff home working – the cost of running the riverside offices was not financially viable.

Leader Cllr Alan Jarrett (Con) previously expressed an interest to rent out part of the 1970s' Grade II-listed building in Dock Road to claw back cash.

It costs £2 million a year to maintain with the heating bill alone running to £1.1m because it is not energy efficient.

Rumours have emerged over the last year that the 1,000-strong council workforce could be moving to another premises in the town.

These included the empty Debenhams store in the High Street or Mountbatten House, the 13-storey empty office block above the Pentagon.

A survey of employees found 90% were satisfied with their new flexible working conditions with a significant number preferring to work from home permanently.

Cllr Jarrett has stressed the authority's HQ will remain in Chatham, where it is committed to a multi-million pound regeneration of the town centre.

Delivery director for the south east region, Lorraine Tedeschini, said at the time of the relocation announcement: "Establishing Gun Wharf as Medway County and Family Court in the longer term means concerns regarding ease of travel are resolved by using a location close to the current court."

The decision followed a consultation last year where the service initially proposed most work be permanently relocated to Maidstone Combined Court.

It said, however, it became clear from the survey that people overwhelmingly wanted to retain the court in Medway.

Gun Wharf was built as an administrative headquarters for Lloyd's of London and bought by the council in 2006 when the authority moved from an old factory premises on the Esplanade, Strood.