Part of Maidstone town centre was sealed off by police this evening following reports of a suspicious package.

Officers were called to Jubilee Square in the High Street at 4.52pm.

Pictures posted on social media show several police cars blocking the pedestrianised area by branches of NatWest and HSBC.

A spokesperson for Kent Police said; "Officers attended but deemed it to be a well-intentioned false alarm."

The scare comes after the UK's terror alert was upped to critical following the Parsons Green bombing in west London. That means another attack is expected imminently.

Earlier, an 18-year-old man was arrested in Dover in connection with the blast on a tube train that left dozens of people injured.