The highly anticipated opening date for a new home, leisure and garden superstore has been revealed.

The Range is set to open inside the former Homebase unit at Sittingbourne Retail Park later this week.

In January it was announced the retail giant would be replacing the DIY shop.

KentOnline reported how staff had told customers about the changeover, although a date had not been confirmed by either firm.

But now it has been revealed The Range will open this Friday (April 11).

It will join Dunelm, Pets at Home, PureGym, Currys, M&S Foodhall and Dreams already at the retail park.

The new store will operate from 9am to 8pm Monday to Saturday and at 10.30am to 4.30pm on Sundays.

The move comes after the announcement in November that Homebase was going into administration and The Range, owned by retail magnate Chris Dawson’s CDS (Superstores International), was buying 70 of its stores.

There had been fears that thousands of jobs across the country would be lost.

But staff at the Sittingbourne site are either set to stay at the outlet or be offered jobs at other The Range stores.

The latest branch will join others already in the county, located in Chatham, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells, Ashford, Folkestone, Canterbury and Broadstairs.