A rundown rural pub empty for years is set to be transformed as its new owners hope to offer glamping and a forest school.

The Honest Miller in Brook, near Ashford, has been taken over by Kate Shearcroft and her partner Toby Toms, but they have no plans of running a “traditional pub”.

Since closing just before lockdown in 2020, the venue, which is Grade II-listed, has fallen into disrepair, with numbers missing from the sign and paint peeling.

The new owners of the 16th-century inn, who will run the site alongside Kate’s sister Helen Greencroft, want to get started with renovations as soon as possible, in between running the venue as a cafe.

Ms Shearcroft says: “It is not going to be a traditional pub in terms of late-night opening, we want it to be more of a community hub.

“We will be opening earlier to get morning walkers and maybe parents who want to come in for tea and cake after the school run.

“At first we will open the cafe, then we will look at getting a licence.

“We won't be a full-blown restaurant; it’s going to be locally sourced light bites, cakes and savoury snacks.”

A craft area is on the cards, with a space for visitors to try pottery, printing and painting.

The trio also plan to to get in touch with local artists who might want to run workshops at the site.

Six bell tents for glamping are set to be introduced over the coming months, with a new outdoor toilet block, which planning permission has already been granted for.

A forest school with a mud kitchen has been created in the outdoor space for children.

Admiral Taverns, which previously owned the venue in The Street, put it on the market for about £500,000 shortly after it closed.

It was then snapped up by the Churchill Property Group (CPG), which submitted extensive plans to revamp the pub, convert The Coach House into a holiday rental, and build four houses on land off Troy Town Lane.

But a group of Brook residents voiced their opposition to the redevelopment fearing it would "redefine" the history of the area.

Now, the trio hope to please villagers with their plans and attract tourists, due to the surrounding countryside and proximity to Canterbury.

Mr Toms says: “People are now much more into health and wellbeing than before.

“We have moved away from lazy leisure - people want to go for a walk and stop for tea and cakes.

“Canterbury is not far away for its heritage, for shopping you can go to Ashford, and the coast is not far away.”

But the new venture will benefit residents as well, says Mrs Greencroft, who will operate the forest school and glamping.

“Apart from Wye, there is nothing else in this village for the community,” she said.

“We want to create a nice space for families where kids will be safe and comfortable - a space that’s not pretentious.

Mrs Greencroft, who used to run Badgers Den forest school in nearby Bilsington, adds: “We want the glamping to feel boutique and magical so people can look up onto the Wye Downs.

Outline planning permission was previously put forward to turn the vacant Coach House at the front of the site into a holiday let, but Mr Tom says at the moment he plans to use it as a classic car workshop.

While the cafe at The Honest Miller is open, hours will be limited as the family set up and carry out renovations.

It is open every Thursday to Saturday for the rest of September and throughout October.