Work is well under way to restore one of the Island’s historic landmarks to its former glory.

The Victoria Working Men’s Club building in the Broadway, which for more than 100 years provided a stage for many a Sheppey social occasion, has been in a sorry state since it shut in 2000.

Although its social side survives next door, the main building which was built in 1882 had become a blot on the town’s landscape for more than a decade.

A target for thieves and vandals, its once hallowed dance hall provided a home for pigeons and assorted vermin which sneaked in through its shattered doors and windows.

But after years of neglect and political wrangling, with its ownership changing hands three times as would-be developers came and went, the VC, as it shall ever be affectionately known, is once again standing proudly as a superb example of Victorian architecture.

Sold at auction to a Rochester-based developer for £180,000 in September 2010, work could soon be completed to convert it into 25 private flats.

There will also be room for 19 parking spaces, but its facade will remain untouched, except for a new lick of paint.