THE final bids for an £18m contract to manage a region-wide business support service were received yesterday.

The Business Link network is undergoing a complete overhaul to become a region-wide rather than sub-regional service, and regional development agency One NorthEast is due to award a new contract to run the service in March.

At least six consortiums are believed to be in the running, including A4e, which is the present operator of Business Link County Durham, who will face Durham University's Business School a group consisting of Business Links Tyne and Wear, Tees Valley and Northumberland, as well as the North-East Chamber of Commerce.

Other bidders include a consortium of enterprise agencies from the North-East, Wales and Scotland.

One NorthEast took over responsibility for Business Link in April and, last year, the service helped almost 15,000 businesses.

The agency has drawn up a confidential shortlist of potential operators to run the new service and the deadline for bids closed yesterday.

Tim Pain, head of enterprise and business support at One NorthEast, said: "Business Link has gone through some changes during the years. What we want to see now is more consistency across the region, so no matter where you live in the North-East you get the same level of service.

"At the moment, the support service you get in Northumberland, for example, is different to what you get in Durham. It needs to become more consistent across the region.

"If we move towards having one regional approach, the savings that are made can then be put back into front-line support.

"This is not unique, other regions are doing it. The reason we are going along the same route is to ensure the service is more efficient and more consistent.

"And because this is a competitive process, we will choose the one most likely to provide the best service."

The four Business Link contracts run out in April next year, giving the successful bidder for the new contract a year to ensure a smooth transition.

The contract is worth £6m per year and will run for between three and five years.