THE North-East winner of this year's Prince's Trust Business Awards will be announced today.

Dr Bob Dobbie, regional director of the Government Office for the North-East, will present the region's winner with a cheque for £500 and a place in the national finals, at Durham County Cricket Club, in Chester-le-Street.

The awards, sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, recognise businesses that have achieved success over the past three years with support from the Prince's Trust.

The shortlist of companies and candidates represents a wide range of flourishing businesses throughout the region and includes:

l Durham City teddy bear retailer Bear Bottoms, run by Joanne McDonald. The business, based on Elvet Bridge, sells bears from £2.99 to rare German Steiff bears worth hundreds of pounds.

l Electronic solutions and service business i2B, run by Philip Tompkinson and Hilary Kinnair. They have developed a software application called eSRM, which enables big firms to interact more efficiently with their suppliers, using web technology. It gives suppliers access via the Internet to their customer's key procurement information, from purchase orders to vendor rating.

Other companies in the running for an award include Hartlepool-based Houseproud Domestic, a domestic cleaning service run by Jody Moulding; fashion designer Artsang Fashions International, run by Anh Tsang, in Newcastle; Gecko Design Marketing, in Newcastle, run by Andy Greener and Ben Trennery; Lisa Bell, of Bell's Barber Shop in Gateshead, and gardener David Clint, also from Gateshead.

The Royal Bank of Scotland's sponsorship of the event is part of a £9.7m support package from the bank to the Prince's Trust.

David Beavis, regional director for the Prince's Trust, said: "The Business Awards help to celebrate the trust's work in developing and nurturing young entrepreneurs.

"The success of the young entrepreneurs who have been shortlisted prove that when they are well supported, they can compete in the marketplace as well as making a positive contribution to their local communities."

Each business is judged on their sales tactics, budgetary management skills, innovation and "going the extra mile".

The Prince's Trust is holding regional ceremonies across the UK in November, with a national winner being decided in the spring of next year. The national winner will take home a prize of £4,000.

Mike O'Hara, area business manager for the Royal Bank of Scotland, said: "The North-East should be impressed and delighted by the levels of entrepreneurship among its young businesses.