A popular music venue is being sold after closing down and could be turned into flats.

The Beacon Court Tavern in Gillingham shut in June, with the former tenant saying it was too costly to run.

At the time brewery Shepherd Neame said it was considering a variety of options. Now the pub is set to go under the hammer at a property auction.

The building, on the corner of Canterbury Street and Copenhagen Road, is being marketed as a large public house with potential for a variety of future uses. It has a guide price of £200,000 to £220,000.

John Stockey, auctioneer, said: “This is a substantial three storey building with a cellar and it has a lot of potential.

“There are two floors of residential accommodation above the venue itself that was previously popular among live music fans.

“It might be developed in a variety of ways as long as all necessary consents are obtainable.

“With the market still buoyant and investment in the region still strong we anticipate interest in this lot.”

The pub could suffer the same fate as many others in the towns and be demolished or redeveloped to make way for homes.

Plans were submitted earlier this month knock down the Trafalgar Maid in Warner Street, Chatham which has been closed for several years. The applicant intends to build six flats.

It is the latest in a series of applications to replace pubs with housing including The Green Dragon, The Countryman, The Black Lion, and The Brickmakers Arms in Gillingham; The Three Gardeners, Tug and Shovel, The Alma and The Horseshoe in Strood; The North Foreland in Rochester and The Woodsman in Walderslade.

Medway needs to find enough land to create 30,000 new homes over the next 20 years and the council are under huge pressure to find sites.

Meanwhile brewery Shepherd Neame has said it wants to focus on quality not quantity. The family-run firm has bought 17 pubs in recent years but sold 50.

• The Beacon Court will go on sale at The Clive Emson Conference Centre, Detling, on Wednesday, September 14. The auction begins at 11am.