A MAJOR facelift is to bring bigger and better facilities to east Durham's busiest shopping centre.

Oracle Estates bought Peterlee town centre's shopping mall for £47m in January.

After months of surveys and assessments, the firm has now launched a comprehensive scheme to breathe new life into the retail heart of the town.

The Castle Dene shopping centre is one of the few in the region which has stood its commercial ground in the face of fierce out-of-town competition from multi-national chains.

This week, the manager of Castle Dene, Mike Weston, said the new owners are determined to maintain the centre's popularity by upgrading several important units and improving disabled access.

Work is under way on installing a central lift system and stairway in the town square, which will provide easier access to the mall's first-floor outlets.

Construction work is about to start on three large units fronting the mall's main thoroughfare, following their demolition.

The replacement units are being built with reinforcement to accommodate a second floor which, it is hoped, will eventually be taken over by a major national outlet.

The new units are expected to be completed by February and one of them has already been snapped up by the New Look fashion chain.

"We want to offer more choice for shoppers and, under a three-year rolling programme, will be improving access for the disabled to park and shop,'' said Mr Weston, who has many years experience running shopping centres.

Oracle is in negotiations with the Morrisons chain, which only days ago closed down the town's second-largest supermarket, the former Safeway.

Mr Weston confirmed that Oracle was in talks with Morrisons and that if a deal can be forged, his company is considering transforming the former store into three new outlets.

Work in the mall will include refurbishment of roof facias and general maintenance.

Oracle has invested in a modern CCTV security system, which will go online from Monday.

Twelve high-definition cameras provide added security of the shops and shoppers.

Mr Weston said it is Oracle's aim to keep the shopping centre up-to-date and attractive to the public.

He added: "We are anxious to bring more shopping opportunities to the residents of east Durham and we are very confident in the future prosperity of the Castle Dene shopping centre."