The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has awarded development funding of £384,500 to The Dreamland Trust in Margate, UK to develop plans for creating the world's first amusement park of historic rides.

The HLF first-round pass means that the trust can now progress to the second stage of the HLF application process. It has up to two years to submit more detailed plans and apply for the £2.65m of HLF support that it is seeking for the first phase of the £12m project. Phase One of the project will create an amusement park of historic rides, many of which are the last surviving examples of their type. Over the past decade, these rides have been rescued from across the UK by The Dreamland Trust, with the assistance of site owners the Margate Town Centre Regeneration Company.

Centred on the Grade II-listed Scenic Railway, the Trust expects the park to generate a large number of jobs for local people and attract around 700,000 visits annually. Entry to the park and landscaped gardens will be free of charge with wristbands being sold for those who want to experience the rides. During Phase One work will also be carried out on the Grade II*-listed Dreamland cinema building, restoring its 1930s Modernist façade, safeguarding the auditorium and Compton Noterman organ, and installing an exhibition space to explain and publicise the project.

It is planned that the cinema building will house a national centre of street style, celebrating Margate's ties with popular culture, and sharing the UK's rich legacy of music, fashion, photography and graphic design. Commenting on the award, Dreamland Trust honorary secretary Susan Marsh said: "We are delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund has given us the opportunity to further develop our vision for Dreamland Margate.

"Along with our partners at the Margate Renewal Partnership, Thanet District Council and the Margate Town Centre Regeneration Company, we are committed to bringing this project to reality as quickly as possible."