AN enterprising businesswoman is bucking a national trend by setting up a call centre creating up to 65 jobs for Weardale workers.

Even more surprising, with major companies like Lloyds TSB opting for cheaper labour markets in India, Maureen Stanton is developing her business On Net Communications in one of the most isolated corners of the region.

Her new premises are a former works canteen at Weardale Steel, in Wolsingham, and she plans further centres in other Weardale villages such as Stanhope and at nearby Tow Law.

The new posts come exactly two years after Lafarge Cement dealt the Weardale population a massive blow by announcing the closure of its 37-year-old Eastgate plant with the loss of 147 jobs.

For Mrs Stanton, the £500,000 venture makes sound business sense, relying as it does on the quality of the Weardale workforce. She already has an impressive list of nationally-known clients and has gathered together a small team of staff to prepare the canteen for new computers and the latest communication equipment to be delivered in a few days' time.

Redevelopment agency One NorthEast are paying for a satellite link, while Weardale waits for the high-speed Broadband communication, which is one of seven key projects identified by a Task Force planning its revival following the job losses and foot-and-mouth.

Mrs Stanton said: "My business is based on quality, both of the people who work here and the service we offer.

"The latest industry reports say it may be cheaper to take your calls to places like Bangalore, in India, where labour is cheap but, in terms of service provided, British centres are what people are coming back to.

"At the same time I expect far less wastage, which is important because a lot of resources go into training.

"People can work from home if they want, and we are aiming for a sense of community.

"Big centres suffer from people moving from one to another but I am confident that people will stay because they like working here."

On the same Weardale Steel site, a new company is gradually replacing some of the 84 jobs lost there following a shock collapse in October 1992, while a business park is planned on adjacent land.