The army’s bomb squad was called in today after a suspicious package was sent to a residential property.

The police set up a cordon in The Poles, Upchurch, near Sittingbourne, around 9:30am after concerns were raised.

Speaking this afternoon, a spokesman for the force said the package had proved to be harmless.

The army left the street around 3.30pm but a police presence remained.

Reporting from the scene, KentOnline’s Sean McPolin said a driveway of a home had been cordoned off.

Neighbours were unaware of what had happened.

Steve Laming, of the Upchurch Horticultural Society, had spoken to a fellow villager about the incident.

He said: “I heard from someone walking down the road that there was a suspicious parcel being delivered and [the resident] must have called it in.

“There were a lot of police to start with then a bomb disposal lorry turned up.”

The army has been contacted for information about what it did with the package.