Work is under way to return the Glass House, the building which was gutted in a devastating blaze in June 2013, into use as flats.

Workers have recently been seen on scaffolding around the Richmond Street site and new signs have gone up on the wooden hoardings at street level.

At the moment work is being carried out to return the building to a habitable condition for the occupiers and repair the damage caused by the fire.

It will be used for flats again in the future and the expectation is that the work will be completed by the middle of the year. NatWest bank is the freeholder of the property.

It came under the bank’s ownership when it was repossessed before the fire struck and as such NatWest was responsible for repairs and maintaining common parts of the building, such as the entrance hall and staircase, as well as the exterior walls and roof. The bank has declined to comment.

In January last year we reported how building firm, Gaysha Ltd, which took on the work of fitting a temporary roof and making the Glass House structurally sound, withdrew its services after it said it had not received payment for bills.

Building control from Swale council had previously been involved to make sure that the property was not dangerous.

Keith Georgeson lives near to the building and is interested in Sheppey’s history.

He said: “To be fair we are pleased that it’s being restored and it can only be good news, I think, because it’s been an eyesore and you would assume that people still own those flats because their tenants have been rehoused.

He went on to say: “In fairness, it’s not been a very pleasant sight over the past 18 months or so since the fire because it’s been scaffolded and there have been people breaking into it over that period.”

Several people were hospitalised and families were made homeless after the blaze caused by an arson attack.

Although five people were arrested over the course of the investigation, no one was convicted and the case was shelved after police said they had exhausted all lines of inquiry.