STAFF numbers at the Big Lottery Fund's North-East operations centre have nearly doubled.

The distributor of National Lottery money has created more than 80 jobs in recent months to push the number of people employed by the group in Newcastle to more than 150.

The number of workers is expected to rise to almost 250 by the end of the year as a result of the Lyons Review, which urged the relocation of civil service jobs from London and the South.

The Big Lottery Fund's northern headquarters, in Newcastle, recently relocated into bigger offices at the St James' Gate development. It was opened by Richard Caborn, Minister for Sport, earlier this month.

At the launch, Sir Clive Booth, chairman of the Big Lottery Fund, said: "By centralising our funding operations and moving them out of London, we'll secure real efficiency savings.

"Reductions in running costs will mean more money going directly to projects and communities."

The Big Lottery Fund has a second operational centre in Birmingham and the two sites take the lead in distributing Lottery cash, a role previously carried out in London and eight regional centres.

The move into St James' Gate saw the Big Lottery Fund enlist the help of Tyneside audio-visual firm Zero Plus UK to install video conferencing facilities.

Five suites at the 38,000sq ft centre have been equipped with conferencing technology, including Ampetronic induction loops to help staff or visitors with hearing aids receive a clearer sound during presentations or meetings.

Tim Davies-Pugh, the fund's deputy director of programme management, said: "As we doubled our staff recently, it was clear we required bigger offices, and having the chance to create a bespoke working environment with audio visual experts such as Zero Plus has allowed us to use the latest technology to make long-term savings and increase our productivity.

"With the video conferencing equipment we will make significant savings on travel and accommodation costs for staff, as we can now link up remotely to the other 13 sites across the UK to hold meetings."

The Big Lottery Fund distributes half of the good causes money generated by the National Lottery.