COUNCILLORS have approved plans for a multi-million pound leisure and retail park on the edge of Bishop Auckland.

All councillors at Wear Valley District Council's planning committee meeting voted in favour of the development, which could bring more than 500 jobs to the area.

The proposal, for an eight screen cinema, restaurants, shops, a bingo hall and 1,000 parking spaces, will be built on land in Tindale Crescent, near to the site of Bishop Auckland FC's new stadium.

The details will be forwarded to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, where planners will either make a decision or defer the plans back to the council to have the final say.

This means that no date has yet been set for work to start, but developers hope to have seven screens completed at the cinema by 2007.

David Townsend, chief planner at Wear Valley District Council, said: "There will be significant regeneration benefits for this part of the district. It could create 549 long-term jobs, of which 244 would be full-time and 305 part-time."

He said that a major cinema operator had expressed an interest in coming to the town, as well as two bingo operators, and allayed fears that the new development could affect business in the town centre and lead to traffic problems in the area.

About 13.3 hectares of land in St Helens Way have been earmarked for the site by property company Terrace Hill North-East Limited, which is behind the proposal.

The former Warner Electrics factory, at the centre of the site, has been demolished in anticipation and DIY company B&Q is expected to move to the site from its current store on Bob Hardisty Drive. Councillor Margaret Jones, who represents Bishop Auckland, said: "People have been waiting for a cinema for years now, and this will not just be a cinema but lots of other attractions as well.

"I think this will bring hordes of people into the area and I also think that some people who visit the complex will visit Bishop Auckland, which will be a benefit for the traders there."

Councillor Margaret Douthwaite, who represents the West Auckland area, said: "St Helens and West Auckland Road need these jobs, and it has a knock-on effect to the whole of the area."