A village is set to have a lifeline store return inside its 19th-century home - five years after its previous closure.

The building in Egerton, near Ashford, was taken over by Stephen Royce Ltd in 2022, with the listed building earmarked for a mixed-used development with a one-bed apartment, a three-bed family home, plus a fully-refurbished shop.

The site in The Street is set for a grand opening on April 13 as a lease has already been agreed with Benet Kumar, who has been the Post Master and owner of the Pluckley Village store since 2020.

Mr Kumar, 39, is excited to get underway after seeing the positive feedback online from the announcement of the launch.

He told KentOnline: “I already take care of Pluckley but this village needed a store.

“It’s been the nicest feeling seeing all the comments online when we announced the opening.

“I hope in the future anyone who needs a shop can just pop in here rather than spending their time on a roundtrip to Pluckley or Charing, I hope it can really be an asset to the community.”

Currently, the nearest store is the village store in Pluckley but with no bus route, residents are reliant on their own transport, taxis or walking the 40 minutes to reach the shop.

Business partners Royce Parker and Stephen Bentley moved to Egerton in 2015 and 2016 respectively, and have done most of the work on the site themselves.

They described the project as “a labour of love” as they look to restore something missing back to the village.

Mr Parker said: “I think it’s a focal point that could bring everyone together, it’ll be ideal for walkers, ramblers and the local community.

“We have done this because it’s something we are passionate about and we want the village to have a hub and it brought some life back to a very unloved and neglected building.

“It’s an investment but it’s not short term and it’s because we are passionate about living here and passionate about keeping the community going.”

Mr Bentley agreed and hoped their hard work would pay off.

He said: “It’s been very enjoyable, we joke about the difficulties but now they are behind us it’s been quite rewarding.”

It’s hoped the store can be a staple of Egerton’s high street just as it previously served the community before it’s closure.