RURAL communities are to get a £1.4m boost from the Durham Market Towns Initiative.

The cash will enhance communities and encourage business growth around Barnard Castle, Crook, Middleton-in-Teesdale and Stanhope.

The initiative is funded by One NorthEast and the Countryside Agency, to regenerate communities and ensure problems of decline are addressed. It also gives people a say in the social, cultural and economic future of their towns.

Businesses and communities are also being encouraged to use modern communications equipment to open worldwide markets by putting their web pages within the One NorthEast Regional Portal at www.n-e-life.com

The Barnard Castle/Middleton-in-Teesdale website is already increasing trade for some businesses, especially antiques and arts and crafts businesses.

Phil Hughes, a board member of One NorthEast, said that although market towns were the hub of rural life, they were prone to high unemployment, low investment and lack of social and career opportunities.

He said: "Market Town Initiative aims to tackle these problems head on and provide practical solutions, and most of all we want to help local people meet these challenges."

The Countryside Agency has developed a toolkit to help people identify the strengths and weaknesses of the towns.

Glyn Bateman, of the Countryside Agency, said: "Some towns have adapted better than others to the changing times, and it is our aim to ensure they all have a prosperous future."

Shaun Stuart, chief executive of the Teesdale Enterprise Agency, which is developing the Barnard Castle website, said: "The portal will be an excellent tool with which to promote Teesdale.

"Although our aim is to get every Teesdale business to promote themselves through the portal, it will also focus on community and lifestyle issues and will develop into an excellent source of local information."