PLANS to revamp Minehead's Regal Theatre look set to take a giant step closer to reality next week when district councillors are due to allocate £50,000 towards the ambitious scheme.

Members of the Minehead Amateur Theatrical Association (MATA), which runs the Regal, have already secured revised planning permission for a slightly scaled-down version of their long-awaited Lift Off project.

The scheme will see a street-level box office, more toilets, better electricity and plumbing systems and an all-important lift to enable theatregoers with limited mobility access to all areas of the theatre.

The plans still include proposals for a fully glazed entrance and lift shaft but no longer feature a large curved glass facade.

MATA has raised more than £200,000 towards the cost of the scheme and next week £50,000 looks likely to be given by West Somerset Council's cabinet from a £200,000 Government funding pot specifically for use in Minehead.

The Seaside Strategy Funding was given to the authority back in 2009 in recognition of the "important role that towns such as Minehead play in the coastal economy", linked to the fact that Minehead was one of the most 25 deprived coastal towns in England.

Ray Tew, chairman of MATA, said the Lift Off scheme would modernise the access to the theatre while creating a "dramatic presence" on the street.

"The scheme maximises the available space at ground level and creates an inviting box-office and foyer space," he said.

"The former main entrance to the Regal Theatre is now the entrance to a redundant supermarket.

"Since the loss of the former entrance, the Regal has suffered as a venue by not having an obvious and focal entrance point from which forthcoming events may be advertised/promoted and also box office for ticket sales and bookings.

"There is now also the requirement that access to the theatre must comply with access for the less able under the Disability Discrimination Act referred to above.

"The design of the entrance and lift shaft would provide a striking feature that due to its largely transparent nature would allow the original building to still be seen and the proposed use of materials would complement the balcony and awning previously granted

planning permission."

The Regal was built in 1934 as a 1,600 seat theatre and cinema with a single-storey ballroom to one side.

Planning permission for a new-look foyer was first granted in 2005 and renewed in 2010.

The latest plans to be approved increase the footprint of the building by ten square metres, almost four square metres less than originally proposed.

The district council cash is need to help bridge a £75,000 shortfall in the £253,942 scheme, which is earmarked to get underway in September this year.

Cabinet members will be told the Lift Off project would go some way towards plans to create a cultural quarter in Minehead using the Seaside Strategy Funding.

Councillors have already agreed to give £10,000 to the Minehead Development Trust to help it submit a bid for lottery funding towards the cost of turning the old hospital building into a community and cultural hub for the town.

A further £10,000 was agreed as a "worst case scenario" for the maintenance and refurbishment of the bandstand in Blenheim Gardens to create a more flexible performance space.

A grant of £8,137 was given towards a £9,300 project for new signs at Minehead Enterprise Park and an additional £800 was given to support the council's own scheme to improve the seafront and Esplanade area.

A further £70,000 was ring-fenced for the creation of a visioning manager's post.

The 18-months role would see Minehead's own version of a town centre manager trying to attract additional funding to the area, co-ordinating projects to improve the "vitality and vibrancy" of the town and establishing a business plan for the regeneration of the town.

All bids for a share of the Government cash must fit in with a vision statement drawn up by the Minehead Visioning Group, which was set up specifically to oversee the allocation of the money.

The visioning group includes representatives from the district council, Minehead Town Council, Somerset County Council and Minehead Chamber of Trade, as well as members of other key groups and organisations in the town.

The group's detailed action plan, which includes key priorities and targets, aims to make Minehead a "thriving, prosperous, safe and attractive town, with access to quality services and facilities for residents, businesses and visitors alike" by 2020.