AN ACTION plan has been agreed to develop formal links between voluntary sector and local authority groups in County Durham.
The development of a "Compact" for the county was top of the agenda at a conference attended by scores of voluntary and community bodies at Ushaw College, near Durham.
Spurred by an address by Home Affairs Minister Paul Boateng, who made an extended stay at the conference, delegates discussed ground rules for joint working between the public and voluntary sector.
The conference was also told of continued backing from the National Lottery Charities Board, which although requiring some match funding, gives the Compact scheme a £180,000 "firm base" from which to work over the coming three years.
Other support has been pledged by the county council and health authority, plus Durham and Darlington's district and borough councils.
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