Ten Bradford firms are celebrating a share of around £130,000 of regeneration cash to help boost business in a deprived part of the city.

Regeneration agency Regen 2000 has awarded the hand-outs to the companies based in the Undercliffe, Laisterdyke, Bradford Moor, Barkerend, Little Germany and Cathedral Quarter areas.

The money has been targeted at the firms which are starting up, expanding, moving to new premises and looking to take on new staff from the Regen area, which has a population of 22,000.

All the applicants went through a strict vetting procedure by Business Link and will continue to be monitored to ensure promised outputs in terms of employment and growth are achieved until 2007.

Nasim Qureshi, from the Regen 2000 business development programme, said the grants were an integral part of the project to revitalise the Leeds Road corridor area.

"A key aim of Regen 2000 is to provide sustainable economic regeneration to the Bradford 3 area," he said.

"These grants have been provided to help local businesses develop and grow and provide employment for local people. In addition a number of disused premises in the area have been brought back to life.

"By investing in local businesses we are working towards helping achieve a thriving local economy that will be of benefit to everyone in the Regen 2000 area."

Among the companies to benefit from the project was e-commerce venture Bluesell, which is based at the Design Exchange in Little Germany.

The firm, which retails Bluetooth wireless products, received two separate grants to help the start-up process and assist its website development.

Narinder Sandhu, business development officer for the company, said the grants had provided a timely boost for the firm, which was set up last year. It is expecting to create three new jobs in its first 12 months.

"We are very grateful to Regen 2000 for aiding us with this grant," he said. "We had the ambition and the drive and this has definitely accelerated what we can achieve. It is a great community based project to be involved in."

PEC Building Services, based in Garnett Street, was awarded £14,000 to expand its head office and improve its computer network system, creating three new jobs.

Project manager Sohan Panesar said: "It has been very beneficial to us - both to our business and also in providing jobs for local people."

Regen 2000 has received around £28.5 million to invest in the area through the Government's Single Regeneration Budget, but with match funding the total investment could be nearer £70 million.

For further information on the Regen 2000 Business Support project, call (01274) 230075.