Town leaders are determined to turn a dilapidated Worthing shopping centre into a multiplex cinema despite a major setback.

The Odeon Group has pulled out of building a cinema at the Teville Gate shopping centre, Worthing, but town councillors still believe the site can be saved.

For several years Teville Gate has been in planning limbo, with a number of schemes to redevelop the centre coming to nothing.

In that time, most of the shops have closed, apart from a chemist, a burger bar and an electrical appliance store. The precinct has suffered from vandals and squatters.

Problems with relocating the current Teville Gate tenants have led to long delays in the plans for an eight-screen cinema near Worthing railway station.

Chris Sargent, executive councillor for planning, said: "The Odeon Group has been very patient - think of the years it has been waiting to get started.

"I do not blame it for pulling out. It is not very good for Worthing but it is also not the end of the road.

"There are a number of other cinema operators in Britain and we are in touch with a couple of them and still hope to get a cinema at Teville Gate."

Mr Sargent, a Liberal Democrat councillor, blamed the last Conservative administration for not imposing compulsory purchase orders on the current tenants sooner.

He said: "The developers, Farrho, own most of the site but still have tenants who are reluctant to leave.

"Three years ago the Lib Dems lost control of the council and, at that time, were setting in place the process of compulsory purchase orders to buy out those tenants. Three years have elapsed and they are still there."

New proposals for the site are expected to be submitted to the council before Christmas and may include a mixture of a cinema, restaurants, fitness suites and housing.

Mr Sargent said: "It's still viable to have a multiplex cinema and hopefully we can bring Farrho and a cinema operator together."

When asked why the council had not imposed compulsory purchase orders since the Lib Dems came into power in May, he said: "The Conservatives had commissioned a report from an outside advisory group on the question of compulsory purchase orders and we were waiting for the report, which we have now received."

Bob Clare, chairman of Worthing's development control committee, said: "It's frustrating something has not happened.

"Teville Gate is the gateway to Worthing and it's absolutely vital whatever is put there reflects that."