Parts of multi-million pound works to give a tired market town a major facelift have been branded a "shambles" and "a bit of a disgrace".

Nearly £20 million has been set aside to improve the overall layout and appearance of Dartford town centre to make it cleaner, safer and more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly.

The main bulk of the work is being funded via two government pots totalling £12m, and the additional phases via developer contributions on new-builds sites at Copperhouse Green and Lowfield Street land formerly owned by Tesco.

But the project has been with hit by numerous delays and complications due to supplier issues and disputes with contractors.

Dartford council acknowledged there may be phases during the building when "things look less than attractive" but said when complete it would provide public spaces "fit for the future".

And while some phases such as Market Street and a new area known as "Brewery Square have been completed, other elements remain either incomplete or subject to sign-off.

It has led some locals to brand the scheme a "shambles" with some areas looking like they have been "asphalted over".

Mick Allen, 63, said: "I feel that something that we have paid for through our council tax and haven’t got is a valid reason for a moan.

"We were told to expect a town centre to be proud of - what we have is a shambles."

The Temple Hill resident says large areas outside Iceland and the Clipper pub in Market Street look like they have been "dug up" and left unattended for months on end.

A large area at the end of the High Street outside Lloyds has also been paved over and the raised part of One Bell Corner sealed off and part-painted.

The retiree added: "The asphalted area has been left in that state. It's as if they have run out of paving slabs."

Mr Allen has blasted the lack of communication over the "shoddy" works and wants to see more information and updates made available to the public.

"We have not been told what is going on," he added. "The only thing they have done in the High Street is One Bell Corner.

"It just looks a bit of a disgrace and in need of a bit of a scrub."

Other locals hit out at the lack of landscaped gardens and plazas promised, instead calling it a "concrete jungle" surrounded by high-rise flats and litter.

Market Street’s transformation has seen its disused bus stands removed to create a better link between Central Park and the High Street, and improve access to the library and recently refurbished events venue Acacia Hall.

According to the authority's most recent report on the works, the original project was meant to be complete last summer but was interrupted by the pandemic and supply issues.

These, and the proposed addition of additional works in Spital Street has led to a projected current finish date of early 2024.

The next phase of works in Hythe Street is intended to follow the blueprint for Market Street, by improving the experience of pedestrians and cyclists, and installing improved street lighting.

It comes shortly after a major £75m development scheme was axed which would have seen hundreds of new homes and a cinema built on the former Co-op site. The council says it now intends to take forward a "housing-led scheme" on-site.

The local authority says it is always happy to answer any questions about the town centre's regeneration and there were "good reasons" for the steps it was taking.

A spokesperson for the council said: “The town centre regeneration is a huge project and one of the challenges is to keep the High Street and other public spaces open while the work is progressing.

"This means we frequently use temporary re-instatement as a much better alternative to keeping areas barricaded and closed while associated works go on.

"We can understand how the use of temporary re-instatement may give the impression of work being unfinished but there is nearly always a good reason for the steps we take."

It the asphalt across the High Street near the Iceland store was to cover groundwork for rising bollards to enable delivery and emergency access. This will only be installed at the end of the project.

In the meantime the temporary use of asphalt will enable it to get all the footings in place and keep the street open.

Similarly, high quality paving will be installed at the junction at the west of the High Street, which marks the point where two phases of the regeneration meet.

In a statement, the council added: “After several decades, we’re proud to be regenerating the High Street and town centre.

"Like many big projects, there may be phases during the building when things look less than attractive but when it’s all complete and our contractors finally move out, we will have new public spaces fit for the future.

“Cleanliness of paved areas is always a big issue for towns and the scourge of chewing gum and stains is a particular problem.

"Shoppers and visitors may have noticed that we have invested in a specialised street washing machine that is now deployed every day.

"Litter is also always disappointing to see and whilst there are plenty of bins and a dedicated road sweeper we really do rely on peoples’ good sense and personal behaviour to make sure they dispose of rubbish responsibly.”