WEAR Valley and Sedgefield district councils have been given more money to accelerate the regeneration of the area's deprived communities.

The Government has doubled the amount of money the councils will receive in the first year of the three-year Neighbourhood Renewal Fund.

Wear Valley District Council was expecting to receive £400,000 in April, but that has risen to £800,000.

Sedgefield's share of the handout has been boosted by £285,000 to £570,000.

The authorities are expected to draw up a development programme before the end of March and use the cash to target key areas, including education, crime and housing.

In Wear Valley, there will be a particular focus towards the nine most deprived areas: Henknowle, Woodhouse Close, Coundon, Coundon Grange, Willington West, Tow Law, Wheatbottom and Helmington Row, St Helen Auckland, and Stanley.

Bob Hope, director of regeneration at Wear Valley District Council, said: "We were originally targeted with having £3.4m over three years, starting in April. The first year we would have had £400,000, but the Government has found another £100m, so we have been given an additional £400,000.

"It's quite a considerable resource for the Wear Valley area. We are going through a process of identifying what the money can be used for, and we have a meeting with the Government office next week to set the ball rolling."

The money could be used on schemes such as the St Helen Auckland regeneration plan, which is already under way.

Between 30 and 40 houses in Tintern Road, on the Leazes Lane estate, are being bulldozed.

The council is working on a joint plan with local people to bid for Government Single Regeneration Budget cash.

Mr Hope said: "We could be looking at housing renewal in certain areas, the rationalisation of council stock, and looking at public sector partnerships."

He said that the authority had to adopt a partnership approach and would be involving services including the health authority, police and education authority.