A bid has been launched to “breathe new life” into a former Marks & Spencer that has sat empty for years.

The East Kent College (EKC) Group has lodged plans with Thanet District Council to transform a building previously occupied by the department store in High Street, Margate, into a state-of-the-art campus.

Papers show it will be equipped with a café and studio space, as bosses promise the facility will produce “industry-ready graduates of the highest calibre”.

Called Margate Digital, the site will be fitted out to the tune of £6.3 million – which was secured through a successful bid for government Levelling Up funding.

"Margate Digital will breathe new life into a vacant building which has, since 2006, been used for retail and non-retail operations,” planning documents written on behalf of the EKC Group say.

"This presents a unique opportunity for the district in expanding its education offer within a specialist sector."

The building is expected to cater for as many as 300 students and staff at any given time.

The EKC Group claims Margate Digital will help to “raise aspirations of young people in the area”, while giving adults the chance to retrain or improve their skills.

It also believes the new site – which will incorporate The Margate School – will spark greater levels of investment in the town.

"It will be a specialist industry-focused college purposefully positioned in Margate as a vibrant centre of creativity," the papers add.

"Part of the vision for the development is to provide industry-ready graduates of the highest calibre.

"Students will benefit from the availability of cutting-edge technology in their education and professional development."

The large unit was most recently home to discount clothing chain Store Twenty One but the firm bowed out of the town about five years ago after entering liquidation.

It previously housed Marks & Spencer until it shut in 2006 and the district council bought the building, which backs onto Cecil Square, for £4.5m.

The prominent space was then used by Turner Contemporary for exhibitions and workshops after the gallery opened in 2011.

The cash for the project was awarded to the local authority by the government as part of the nationwide Levelling Up Fund scheme.

A council spokesman said: “In 2020, we were awarded £750,000 of separate government funding, which was used to carry out a full strip out, including the removal of asbestos, of the site.

“These works were completed in spring 2022.

“Subsequent funding of £6.3m has now been secured by the council from a Levelling Up Fund.”