Fright seekers young and old can enjoy being scared to within an inch of their mortal lives at Fort Amherst this Halloween.

For the most part, Chatham’s 18th century fort and its labyrinth of caves and tunnels remains under the control of the site managers and volunteers, but once a year the heritage site falls into the hands of evil.

Or to be a little more precise, it falls into the hands of volunteers dressed up for the fort’s annual Halloween Horrors experience, one of the most popular fixtures in the fort’s calendar.

Recently hailed as being among “the most realistic scares ever achieved in a UK scare attraction”, Halloween Horrors is normally only open to those over 16, but extra tours are being arranged this year for younger visitors.

Work has already begun to transform much of the site’s 20 acres of parkland, buildings and caves into terrifying scenes inhabited by almost one hundred performers, and the extravaganza will begin on Friday, October 24.

Designer Pete Perez said: “Throughout last October, we received call after call from parents trying to find a way that their children could attend. The fort tries to respond to what our community wants, so the 2014 event will feature children’s and teens tours designed to be appropriate to certain age groups as the concern has always been if we drop the age limit for our traditional adult orientated horrors, they cannot be as intense as people expect. And as people come to us to test their nerves, we didn’t want to disappoint.”

As marketing manager Ross Friday explained, the essence of the experience lies in the fort itself.

“The area includes an ancient Saxon burial ground and is heavily researched by paranormal investigators who regularly report unexplained phenomena," he said. "So the fort’s genuine history perhaps serves to add to the imagined horrors of Halloween.”

Or in other words, perhaps the managers and volunteers are not quite so much in control of the Halloween Horrors show as they would like to believe.

Book children’s (under 12), teens (12-16), and adults (16 plus) tours at www.fortamherst.com. Parental guidance is necessary for certain tours.

Tickets can also be bought in the Fort Amherst café (9am-4pm).