A church hall in Stone could be knocked down and turned into flats if development plans are approved.

Plans to demolish the hall of St Mary's Church - which sits in Church Hill - and build flats instead have been submitted to Dartford Council.

In total, the submission requests to build five apartments - four three-bedroom and two two-bedroom - as well as parking spaces.

According to the planning application submitted by PCC (parochial church council) St Mary the Virgin, the building itself has "reached the end of its economic life" and is past the point of restoration.

In place of the hall, the plans also propose building a new hall 400 metres from St Mary's Church. This part of the plan has already been approved.

A developer, which has not yet been named, is said to potentially be in place for the construction.

The submission suggests any development will uphold the council's housing target of making 30 per cent of new housing affordable.

However, the application notes this development "does not qualify" for social housing targets because it is too small.

In terms of sticking to environmental targets, the development proposes to plant trees and greenery on the site, which it also argues will improve air quality in the area.

As the church hall is next to a former landfill site, walks have been conducted in the area and it has been determined there will be no contamination risk to residents on a new development.

The plans, which invite people to comment with their opinions, have already attracted some objections from the public.

Kelly Benyon, a Greenhithe resident, objected because of "too many buildings" being built in the area.

She added that public services, including hospitals and doctors surgeries, are already "struggling" and also expressed concerns about extra traffic in the area that could be caused by the development.