A rock climbing centre is set to open its third Kent branch next year.

Chimera Climbing will be opening its “biggest wall yet” near Chatham Dockside Shopping Outlet.

Jobs are currently being advertised for a full-time centre manager and a part-time accounts administration assistant.

The job description says they will be based in Maritime Way, St Mary's Island.

Chimera, which describes itself as an “indoor rock climbing gym boasting one of the finest bouldering walls in the south east of England”, already has a bouldering facility in Tunbridge Wells and an indoor rock climbing gym in Canterbury.

The Tunbridge Wells centre opened in 2013, followed by the Canterbury branch in 2019.

Anyone who has a monthly pass will be able to use all three Chimera walls when the Chatham location opens.

The centres offer climbing for all ages and abilities. Children aged over five can have a go and they offer children’s parties too. There are children’s lessons for ages five to 16, and school holiday clubs. They offer a range of adult lessons including a taster session for newcomers and women’s only classes.

The new wall will have a dedicated kids area and there will be routes for all abilities as well as a dedicated training area.

The new branch is expected to create at least 15 jobs for locals, and it will be advertising for instructors, receptionists and cleaners soon.

Chimera will work with local schools to make sure as many kids get to give it a go as possible, and there will be film nights as well as a shop and cafe.

Chimera Climbing said: “We are proud to announce that the build on our third Chimera Centre is soon to commence.

Chatham is the location for our third wall. We know there are a huge number of climbers in Chatham, Rochester and the Medway who have to commute a fair distance in order to climb, but soon that won’t be the case.

“Our third gym is also going to be our biggest. We can’t reveal the designs just yet, as where would the fun be if we did that?! But it’s going to be a real mix of angles, top out walls, slabs, kid-friendly sections plus a huge training area.

“We’ll have a café, a licenced bar and run plenty of events so that’s the community sorted – honestly, we are as excited about forming and nurturing a new community as anything else.”

The company said the centre will open “later in 2024”.