Work on a £20 million town centre regeneration project has been pushed backed six more months, it has been revealed.

The first of the foundations for the 50-home development at the former bus depot in Herne Bay were due to be laid towards the end of March.

But the company behind the plans, Guildmore Ltd, was forced to postpone the arrival of a piling rig at the High Street site due to the Covid-19 crisis.

Divisional director Stephen Jelley said: “I was all geared up. If it hadn’t happened, we would probably be up to first floor level by now.

“It was a little bit of a kick in the teeth. We’re waiting for subcontractors to return to work, and then we’re just going to crack on.

“By the time, I get a confirmed date from contractors, I’ll be looking at a four-month delay. I reckon it’ll be starting towards the autumn.”

Herne Bay developer Anthony Leggatt had a bid to replace the derelict depot with 21 cottages, 29 flats and 900 sq m of retail space accepted by Canterbury City Council in 2018.

He sold the prominent plot to Guildmore the following summer, as he decided to retire.

After signing off on the deal, Mr Jelley had anticipated work to be completed by the start of 2021.

But following a series of delays prior to the coronavirus outbreak, he now expects the first of the homes to be moved into in early 2022.

Mr Jelley added: “The worst thing is concrete, sand and plaster boards are in short supply, because manufacturers have been shut.

“It’ll take about eight weeks for people to get back into manufacturing and start to produce enough materials in order to feed construction sites.

“At the moment, it’s a nice little market for whoever’s got construction materials because everything’s a king’s ransom. I’m seeing a 10-15% price increase.”

The commercial space could be filled with as many as nine shops. Mr Jelley says he will know which businesses will take on the premises when building work approaches completion.

Last year, he told the Gazette that he had his eyes set on developing more of Herne Bay - but his interest has since waned.

“Herne Bay’s a hot spot at the moment, as are a few other areas in Kent, but there’s not so much funding going around and it’s meant that people aren’t pushing the button on developments,” he said.

“We always keep our eyes open, but the land market has cooled.”

Read more: All the latest news from Herne Bay