AT LEAST one major North-West Durham festival is under threat unless a cash-strapped council can find an extra £20,000.

A report to Derwentside District Council said that the increasing costs of staging festivals meant that either Allensford Music Festival or Stanley Blues Festival might not go ahead, unless additional money was found.

The report said that higher attendance and stricter Government health and safety rules have led to spiralling costs at a time when European funding had been withdrawn.

The document also suggested creating a cheaper Derwentside Music Festival based at the Consett Empire and Stanley Civic Hall, where a number of music events would take place over a period of weeks.

The festivals, organised by Northern Recording and the council, cost £35,000 when they were staged in 2000, even though a budget of just £17,000 had been set aside.

In the previous two years European money had helped alleviate costs.

Last year, the Allensford festival was cancelled because of the foot-and-mouth disease crisis, but the Stanley event alone cost £13,500.

About 7,000 people attended last year's Stanley festival and more than 10,000 turned out for the Allensford event in 2000.

In a report to the council Nick Wiggins, theatre and arts manager, said: "Existing resources will not enable two large festivals to occur in Derwentside in the summer of 2002, as occurred in 2000.

"If they were both to go ahead, an anticipated overspend of £20,000 by Leisure Services should be expected.

"Closing both will create a saving of £17,000, but would have a seriously detrimental effect on the arts programme."

He added: "A second option - to create a new Derwentside Music Festival - suggests a suitable alternative based within the existing venues and creates a substantial saving by using the existing infrastructure.

"Keeping both festivals, while trying to attract additional funding, requires substantial external funding from the council, with the expectation that this will continue in future years.

"As the festivals continue to grow in popularity, and audience levels increase, this expenditure will also increase."

Derwentside councillors will discuss the various options at a meeting of the community and culture scrutiny panel to be held in Consett Civic Centre, on Tuesday.