Entertainment chiefs planning to revamp a Worthing's historic Dome cinema are facing an uphill struggle to maintain public support.

A council report today says only half the people who took part in a consultation exercise felt the ageing Dome, in Marine Parade, was worth refurbishing.

Meanwhile, 68 per cent wanted a state-of-the-art multiplex cinema instead and more than a third were strongly opposed to any investment being diverted to the Dome.

The report said: "Support for the Dome Cinema does not seem to be as strong as suggested by its advocates, suggesting that its role needs to be more clearly defined and progress needs to made urgently before community support is lost."

The consultation exercise results were part of a report detailing a proposed cultural strategy for the town which could add weight to applications for grants from funding bodies like the Lottery.

But Colin Bradshaw, the Dome's operations director, stressed today that the council was not involved in getting funding for the cinema's refurbishment and insisted public support was as good as ever.

He said: "We have an excellent run of films and figures are well up in terms of people visiting.

"We're a first-release cinema and we have the option to get all the big films. We are not a multiplex but have two screens running four films."

He was pleased with progress on the Dome's applications for lottery cash for refurbishment.