THE Communities First in Rural Somerset project, which is committed to creating and supporting employment in the countryside, has been given a major boost.

It has been awarded £1.2 million in Government money.

CFIRS was launched in 1995 and operates by setting up task forces within specific rural areas of the county.

In its first five-year phase to 2000, the partnership has created 270 jobs, delivered 1,380 weeks of training for 1,630 residents, provided advice and-or grants for 1,260 businesses and supplied 240 childcare places.

A main strength of the scheme has been that its task forces are locally based, and the target communities so far have included Wiveliscombe and surrounding villages and Exmoor east and west of Dulverton.

Among other benefits, the new funding will enable CFIRS to add new target areas - including the upland hill farms of West Somerset.

The new funding is from the latest round of Single Regeneration Budget announcements made by the South West Rural Development Agency on Wednesday.

CFIRS had to bid for its share of the £31.6 million package of SRB funding to take the project into its second five-year phase - to 2006. The bid's success means it can continue in its aims to:

l Speed up economic growth in villages.

l Halt the decline in agricultural and land-based incomes by developing new economic activity.

l Reverse the decline in traditional employment opportunities.

In addition, further local partnerships between the community, businesses, training providers and statutory agencies will be set up.

The CFIRS partnership includes the NFU, the Women's Farmers Union, Somerset TEC, the Country Landowners Association, Somerset Careers and Employment, colleges in the county and Business Link Somerset.

The Royal Bath and West Show, at which the bid for phase two funding was launched, is also in the partnership, as are the county council and five district local authorities.

Chairman of the CFIRS partnership Chris Bailward said: "I think this is a tribute to the work of both the private and public sector agencies which have been working together since 1995 to improve opportunities for rural communities."

Mr Bailward said the continued collaboration between the partnership and the South West Rural Development Agency, would lead to new forms of business to replace lost income.

"We all know the difficulties facing agriculture," he added.

Somerset NFU chairman Marshall Taylor said the new funding was a welcome boost: "We believe by 2006 it will bring significant benefits to agriculture and rural communities.

"The NFU have been in partnership with CFIRS since it first started and very much value its collaborative working and its sharp focus on the needs of the rural community."

The focus of CFIRS has always been to "break the current cycle of deprivation and decline to secure the long-term economic and social well being" of the target areas.

Mr Bailward said this had been more than achieved: "On the key area of jobs, we set out an original target of 135 over four years and already 274 jobs have been created and 145 safeguarded.

"Training is another success story with nearly 1,400 training weeks having already been provided, far exceeding both the forecast provision and the original five year target.

"We have also increased childcare provision by nearly 250 places when only an extra 25 were thought to be possible."

Somerset County Council leader Chris Clarke said: "I am delighted that this partnership which has already achieved so much will be able to extend its good work into additional rural areas of Somerset as well as bringing much needed targeted support to agricultural and land based industries."