Plans for a nine-screen cinema and seven restaurants have been given the go-ahead.

The £85 million extension of Eastbourne Arndale Centre is on top of existing plans for around 23 new stores and extra car parking spaces.

The planning committee at Eastbourne Borough Council gave unanimous support to the additional application for the cinema and restaurants with work expected to start next year.

H&M has been named as one of the anchor stores at the revamped centre with many more new names expected to be announced in the coming months.

Simon Russian, head of retail development at Legal and General Property, which owns the building, said: "I would like to thank the committee and Councillor Tutt and Elkin and Stephen Lloyd MP for their ongoing support and encouragement.

“The addition of a state-of-the-art multi-screen cinema and new restaurants to the extension will help to revitalise the night-time economy of Eastbourne, while the 23 large new shops will give the town one of the best shopping offers in the region.

“This is a tremendously exciting development that will attract visitors from across the South of England and act as an important catalyst for Eastbourne's wider regeneration.”

The first retail phase of the extension is expected to open in the autumn of 2016, with the second phase of retail and leisure to open in late 2017.