Plans to create a new 1,500-capacity conference centre at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool have been given approval.
The conference centre will be a new three-storey extension to the Winter Gardens directly linked to both the Empress Ballroom and the Opera House, constructed on land which is currently used as a car park.
The new conference centre will include a conference hall for 1,500 delegates plus a 1,200sqm exhibition hall.
Blackpool Winter Gardens opened initially in 1878. It regularly hosted the annual major political conferences until 2007 when the resort lost its pre-eminent position.
Advocates of the new conference centre are hoping the project will help Blackpool regain its position as one of the leading conference destinations in Britain.
