STOCKTON has beaten competition from Newcastle and Sunderland to host a national centre for street artists.

As the existing host of the Stockton International Riverside Festival and the Billingham Folk Festival, the town was seen as the ideal venue for a centre for street art production.

Announced as the Tees Valley Partnership pledged its support to Newcastle/Gateshead's City of Culture 2008 bid, the centre will be backed by £150,000 over the next three years from the Arts Council.

With the town already proving a magnet for international street entertainers during its existing festivals, it is hoped the centre will further raise Teesside's profile in the international arts scene.

Reuben Kench, Stockton Borough Council's strategic arts advisor, said: "We are delighted to have been chosen by the Arts Council for this.

"We often hear complaints that the big opportunities go to Tyneside, but now we have got the chance to contribute something unique to the regional and national cultural scene."

The council successfully argued that Stockton is the logical home of street art in the region, pointing to a 15-year history of commissioning and presenting some of the biggest and best in international street theatre, dance, music, comedy and circus acts.

Over the next 18 months, the council will set up feasibility studies to consider a number of sites and designs.

Those backing the scheme expect it to be built on the banks of the River Tees to complement some of the festivals which already take place there.