NESTLED behind the passenger lounge at Tilbury’s London Cruise Terminal sits a rather unloved building.

The paint is peeling off the walls, the roof leaks, it’s dusty and the most frequent visitors are pigeons, but as you walk into the old Tilbury Riverside Station, the sense of history hits you.

There’s a quiet magic about the 1924 Grade II* listed building, which is undeniable.

Maybe it’s the old station clock which still remains, frozen in time at exactly noon, the damaged yet impressive roof which allows natural light to flood in, or the first and second class toilets running along one side of the building, providing a link to a bygone era.

Or perhaps it’s the potential of what it can become if it gets the attention it desperately needs.

The Port of Tilbury has realised the old station is what you might call a gem waiting to be polished, and has announced exciting plans to bring the building back to life.

KDC London has been appointed lead consultants for the project, which is hoping to attract between 15,000 and 20,000 extra visitors a year and funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The company wants to restore the building and its period features, with new glazing, and open part of it up to offer views of the river, and include a new cafe.

It also wants to create a new visitor attraction in the shape of a museum of migration and the sea, new pedestrian access and a river viewing platform, as well as restoring the railway terminal and turning it into a heritage centre.

The plans were warmly received at a special launch held at the terminal last week.

In the audience was Conservative councillor Joy Redsell.

She said: “If this takes off it would be wonderful. We need to embrace our river views more like they have done in Gravesend. This could really rejuvenate Tilbury.”

The plans were also welcomed by Labour Tilbury St Chads councillor Steve Liddiard, who was also at the launch.

KDC was reluctant to give a figure to cover the work needed, but it is believed to be in excess of £1million.

They will be putting an initial bid for funding to the Heritage Lottery Fund in September.

The key aims of the project are to celebrate the spectacular river views and the terminal’s rich history, including its landing stage.

All of Thurrock’s school children were evacuated from it just before the outbreak of the Second World War, and in 1948, the first post-war Caribbean immigrants landed at Tilbury from Jamaica on the ship Empire Windrush.

They had responded to a British Government advertisement to fill the post-war labour shortage.

Many point to this as the moment when the seeds of multi-cultural Britain were sown.

KDC and the Port of Tilbury are keen to hear your views about the plans – check out the consultation at www.surveymonkey.com/s/bigoceanproject