HUNDREDS of new jobs could be created in Bournemouth if civic chiefs finally kick-start legal agreements with developers planning to build the UK's first hotel school.

After more than a decade of planning and protracted negotiations, the four-star training school on a site next to the BIC could soon become a reality.

Council cabinet members will meet on today to examine the terms of the project, with officers recommending that legal agreements with Buckinghamshire-based developer Chesham Estates move forward.

The project was originally conceived in 1999 by the South West Regional Development Agency and Bournemouth University, in conjunction with Bournemouth and Poole College and the council.

The proposed development, part of the Town Centre Vision, includes 200 bedrooms with associated parking, 105 new public car parking spaces, "bridging" the BIC service road, with escalator and lift access to the hotel reception area.

A tree-lined walk to the southern side of Priory Road, leisure facilities and training space for students are also being planned.

A planning application is due to be submitted in April this year. If it is successful and funding is available, construction work could start as early as October this year with the project completed and open to the public by autumn 2013.

Cllr Ian Lancashire, cabinet member for major projects, said: "The hotel training school will be a huge economic boost for the town. Ultimately it will safeguard excellence in our hospitality industry."