BUS company bosses hope to avert next Friday's threatened strike by drivers.

Managers at Go North-East will meet officials of the Transport and General Workers' Union on Monday and Tuesday for further negotiations.

Six hundred staff at the company's Go Northern and Go Gateshead have rejected revised offers of 2.8 per cent and 3.3 per cent respectively. The Gateshead offer was for two years.

Unless a further offer is accepted, the drivers and depot engineers will stage one-day strikes on Fridays.

Go North-East commercial director Martin Harris said: "We have meetings on Monday and Tuesday with trade union representatives.

"It remains our intention to avert any disruption to services and our customers and to seek to resolve the current negotiations without industrial action.

"We always go into these meetings with a constructive attitude to resolve our differences.''

Mr Harris would not say whether the company would be taking improved offers to the negotiating table.

A strike would leave the Consett, Stanley and Chester-le-Street areas with almost no buses as the company runs nearly all services.

Durham County Council officials are looking to see if alternative school buses can be laid on if the strike goes ahead.

A council spokesman said: "We are currently investigating what contingencies might have to be made in the event of industrial action being taken.

"We understand there are negotiations taking place and the situation is far from clear."