London Resort: Everything you need to know

Plans are underway for a huge new theme park on the banks of the River Thames in Kent.

The London Resort was first announced nearly ten years ago and has recently been cleared by the government to move to the next stage - a public inquiry.

This will take into account the opinions of local people and could take 12 to 18 months.

If the development is given the go-ahead it will be the first major theme park to be built in Europe in nearly 30 years.

But not everyone agrees it should happen and there are some environmental concerns,

Here's what you need to know

Plans for the 535-acre theme park are HUGE. Think Disneyland - but in the UK and nothing to do with Disney...

The large site will include hotels, rides and entertainment venues. Two theme parks are planned, with rides influenced by big films and TV shows made by the BBC and Paramount pictures; a waterpark, E-sports venue, and shopping centres are also in the works.

There are also plans to leave a large section of the area undeveloped including Black Duck Marsh, Broadness Marsh and the Local Wildlife Site at Botany Marsh.

The park is aiming to be environmentally friendly with green areas, wildlife habitat protection and quiet zones.

London Resort Company Holdings (LRCH), which is leading the £3.5bn project, says the development will bring new infrastructure, investment and jobs to the local area, as well as making use of an empty brownfield site.

If the project is approved during the public inquiry then the developers are hoping to start work on the site next year.

The aim is to open the first of two planned theme parks in 2024. The second would follow in 2029.

Responses to the resort have been mixed.

In July last year, the developers asked people to share their opinions about the proposals. Of those who had their say, 80% said they wanted London Resort traffic to be separated from local traffic.

While the majority of respondents support the resort, 16% remain strongly opposed to the scheme altogether.

More than 70% said they supported the resort's approach to the environment and biodiversity, as well as sustainability.

However, it is thought that some conservationists will argue about environmental impact on the local area, due to it being home to a number of at-risk species.