The council says it remains "100% committed" to a multi-million pound renovation of the town's lakes despite missing out on vital funding.

The redevelopment of Bradbourne Lakes in Sevenoaks is expected to cost nearly £2million.

Sevenoaks District Council had put a bid in to the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to help with costs, but were rejected.

HLF praised the authority for its "bold aspiration" for the historic site, but still turned it down earlier this month.

Following the news, the district council has remained adamant it is still committed to the plans.

It has already put aside £500,000 towards improvements, which are expected to cost around £1.9million.

The five ornamental lakes date back to 1740 and once formed part of the Bradbourne Estate before Sevenoaks Urban Council took over responsibility in 1935.

The council employed leisure experts Land Use Consultants (LUC) to seek the opinions of visitors, the Bradbourne Residents’ Association and the wider community with results showing the public wanted action to desilt the lakes and repair the lake edges, repair broken structures and the paths, cut back overgrown vegetation and make changes to support wildlife.

Cllr Margot McArthur, the council’s cabinet member for cleaner and greener, said: “While we are disappointed the Heritage Lottery Fund is not supporting our application at this time, we received a great deal of positive feedback about our application.

“This does not dampen our enthusiasm and has made us more determined than ever to improve the Lakes for the benefit of our residents, visitors and wildlife.”