Water tower is worth splashing out on

For sale - four-bed, detached house, with excellent views of the countryside and the ultimate water feature. Even this might be underselling the remarkable home that is being planned in the village of Barming, near Maidstone, Kent. For the feature in question is a giant 75-year-old water tower.

The reinforced 55ft tall concrete structure - which once held 114,000 gallons of water and supplied homes all around the village - could soon be transformed into an imposing five-storey home, yours for about half a million pounds.

The plans were drawn up by local builder Graham Bennett. Bennett and Bussey (Construction), the East Sussex-based firm he and partner Nick Bussey jointly own, has recently been granted planning permission for the conversion. Mr Bennett hopes the work will begin within three months.

The Barming water tower, which was built in the Twenties with additions from the early Fifties, has been standing derelict for the past decade. It will be the first of its kind to be turned into a home.

Mr Bennett said: "The tower is a much-loved local landmark in Barming and there was fierce opposition to plans to demolish it a few years back. In contrast we have received almost universal praise from local residents.

"The idea was to turn the tower into a hi-tech, low-energy house. We are really pleased with the design and my wife has even asked me why we cannot buy it and convert it ourselves. We believe the house will suit an imaginative and somewhat unconventional buyer."

Prospective purchasers are expected to have to pay at least £500,000 for the finished home. The building work is expected to cost around £300,000.

It will be environmentally friendly with energy-efficient underfloor heating throughout. Rainwater will be collected, filtered and then used to flush the lavatories and water the garden, and in washing machines.

Features will include a lift running through the centre of the tower, an open-air heated swimming pool and a conservatory on the roof. The living space consists of four en-suite bedrooms, a television and games room, a dining room, a huge lounge, a kitchen, an office and a nursery.

Mr Bennett said: "There have been Victorian water towers which have been refurbished but as far as we are aware this is the first water tower of its kind to be converted like this. I have already got two people who are interested in buying it."

Now Mr Bennett is holding talks with water companies and even the Ministry of Defence about converting other towers and military buildings - including nuclear bunkers - into modern homes.