A £100,000 campaign to promote Bishop Auckland as a centre for shopping and tourism could be under way within weeks.

Steps have already been taken to set up Bishop Auckland Marketing, a charitable company that will advertise the town and arrange a programme of events and attractions.

Wear Valley district and Durham county councils have pledged the first batch of funding so that the campaign can start next month, during the pre-Christmas period.

The town's MP, Derek Foster, is appealing to other funding agencies, multi-national companies, banks and property owners to back the drive aimed at boosting business and creating jobs.

He told supporters at yesterday's launch: "Bishop Auckland has many strengths and it is time we made the most of them.

"It is time to take the future of the town into our own hands. Most of the people who visit Bishop Auckland don't know what we have to offer because we haven't told them.

"Treasures like Auckland Castle, Escomb's Saxon Church, Binchester Roman Fort, the Laurel and Hardy connection, the railway heritage, the West Auckland World Cup story and Bishop Auckland's famous Amateur Cup successes are all worth shouting about.

"It is the second biggest town in County Durham and more houses are being built all the time, yet a lot of local people don't even shop here.

"There is the potential to attract many thousands of visitors from the whole of the North-East region and farther afield."

Mr Foster appealed for support from traders, voluntary groups and the wider Bishop Auckland community.

He said: "We want everyone who is proud of Bishop Auckland, who wants to see it better than it is, and who wants it to be a much more exciting and fun place to be in, to get behind what we are doing.

"It may take ten or 15 years to achieve all we want to achieve, but we cannot afford to miss this opportunity."