Easington and Derwentside are sharing in a £10.2m windfall to help boost new businesses in disadvantaged communities.

Together with Wear Valley and Sedgefield, they will receive funding under Round One of the Government's neighbourhood renewal programme, Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (Legi).

This aims to transform the economies of deprived areas by encouraging people to start up their own businesses, support growth and reduce the failure rate of locally-owned companies, and attract inward investment and franchising opportunities.

Long-term targets include developing enterprise education, making more space available for office and business units, tackling unemployment and tailoring skills to local needs.

The four councils worked together on the bid and their partnership is one of only ten to be supported in the first round of the initiative, which covers the next three years.

Only local authorities in the most deprived areas were eligible to apply. Government officials believe it will take a generation to change attitudes and generate an enterprise culture in young people.

Alan Napier, Easington District Council leader, said: "This is excellent news for the four districts who have worked hard to achieve this bid.

"We were told by the award panel that our bid was the strongest of the 55 submitted, and that they were impressed with the strong level of collaboration demonstrated by the four districts."

Richard Prisk, Easington's director of regeneration and chairman of the Legi steering group, predicted the effect of the initiative would be dramatic.

He said: "This announcement is tremendous news to help boost existing efforts to promote greater levels of entrepreneurial activity, and enterprise linked to local business growth, so as to create a real and long-lasting step change in the economic prospects of some of the most disadvantaged communities in the district.

"The bid award reflects a considerable effort by many agencies to produce a sound and credible strategy and demonstrates the potential for joint working between Durham's district councils.

"The challenge now is for all partners to work collectively to revitalise the economic fortunes of many communities and residents, presently faced with economic exclusion."