A NORTH-EAST store has been named Independent Retailer of the Year in the recent DIY industry awards.

Decorflair, which has shops in Tyneside, Chester-le-Street, County Durham, and Sunderland, impressed the judges with its instore presentation, promotions and staff expertise.

College honoured: Redcar and Cleveland College's business and management department has won the NEBS Management Centre of Excellence Award, in recognition of its exceptional performance and outstanding initiatives.

PUB SALE: Familiar faces will be staying on behind the bar at a popular village pub which has just been bought by the Punch Pub Company. Julia Welsh and Stephen Kerry sold their freehold in the Dog and Gun, Low Etherley, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, but will lease it back and continue as licensees.

VENUE CHANGE: The North of England Motorshow will be held at Newcastle Racecourse on Saturday and Sunday, August 3 and 4, and not at Whitley Bay, where it has been held for the last 30 years. The change is to accommodate an increase in the number of stands for cars, scooters and motorcycles.

PRESIDENT RETIRES: Guy Beadon, of Little Newsham Hall, Winston, near Darlington, has retired from the presidency of the North-East branch of the Country Land and Business Association.

MANAGEMENT BUY-OUT: Bastion Security (North) Limited has been taken over in a management buy-out and is now called Bastion Security Installations Ltd.

SALES UPDATE: Department store group House of Fraser said like-for-like sales were up four per cent in the first 20 weeks of the current financial year. Total sales were 2.9 per cent ahead.