Police have charged a former Thanet councillor after "anti-racist" graffiti was sprayed on a museum and a road sign bearing Charles Dickens' name.

The street sign in Dickens Road in Broadstairs was spray painted over on Saturday night, amid controversy over the author's views on slavery.

The Dickens House Museum in Victoria Parade was also defaced with graffiti.

Now, former Thanet district councillor Ian Driver, 63, has been charged with seven counts of criminal damage.

One relates to an alleged offence in Broadstairs on June 13 and six in Broadstairs and Ramsgate on Saturday.

The Sea View Road resident is due to appear virtually before Medway Magistrates' today.

The Dickens House Museum - which served as inspiration for the home of Betsey Trotwood in David Copperfield - was emblazoned with the words "Dickens Racist, Dickens Racist", sparking outrage from fans of the famous author.

The Broadstairs Dickens Fellowship slammed the vandalism of the museum.

Its chairman Eddy Coulson said: "Sadly it has been vandalised by a mindless individual with no regard for a cultural asset nor someone possessing any grip on reality.

"The charge that Dickens was a racist is not one I fully support.

"The debate about whether Charles Dickens was a racist has persisted for as long as his books have been read.

"You cannot expunge from history some of the offensive things he has said and written."

He continued: "What must happen is an assessment of the good things he did versus the bad. For my part, as the chairman of the Broadstairs Dickens Fellowship, I believe that he did more by way of improving the society in the time in which he lived than harm it otherwise.

"There exists a host of writing on the subject of whether he was a racist or otherwise. However, 150 years after the death of Dickens what is he best remembered for?

"Any chance of a serious debate is not enhanced by mindless graffiti being daubed on perhaps the town’s best cultural asset."

Thanet District Council has also criticised the vandalism.

A spokesman said: "As a council, we comply with our public sector equality duty and are committed to tackling racial inequality but there is still more to be done.

"The Black Lives Matter protests are an important reminder that we must never become complacent about any form of inequality so, as part of this, we are reviewing all the statues and commemorations within the district.

"We do not, however, condone damage to public property and have had the graffiti removed."

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