YORKSHIRE Forward has invested more money in the region than in any previous year - almost £338million - of which 95 per cent went directly to projects on the ground.

Department of Trade and Industry figures also show that the agency has surpassed expectations over the last year in creating and safeguarding jobs, creating learning opportunities, boosting business start-ups and attracting private sector investment.

Terry Hodgkinson, chairman of Yorkshire Forward, said: "The impact of our work is now becoming increasingly clear right across Yorkshire and the Humber. As a publicly funded organisation, it is paramount that we give full value for money and that people on the ground are able to experience direct benefit from our work.

"Our achievements over the last year make clear that this is happening in quite a dramatic way."

Yorkshire Forward has exceeded all of its five key targets set by the Government to ensure that regional redevelopment agencies boost their area's economy. Indeed, the Yorkshire and Humber RDA was alone in increasing two of its targets - on jobs and business performance - at their mid-year review in an effort to challenge itself even further in these areas.

Yorkshire Forward created or safeguarded some 27,312 jobs against the DTI target of 21,000. The DTI also asked the agency to "support the creation of 51,000 learning opportunities" for the year 2004-5 - but the RDA delivered some 66,050.

In relation to a target to support the creation and attraction of 850 new businesses, Yorkshire Forward is forecasting a return of 1,179 (businesses are only counted after they have survived for 12 months).

In the two remaining areas, the RDA delivered £39.2million of "investment benefiting deprived areas" against a target of £37million and reclaimed 88.3 hectares of brownfield land, 23.3 hectares more than the Government requirement.

To reverse the trend of a lack of business investment in the region in Research & Development, the agency launched a further five Centres of Industrial Collaboration (CICs), bringing the total number to 11. These commercially focused centres have already created or safeguarded more than 130 jobs, grossed over £22 million in research income and entered more than 700 collaborative agreements with businesses since their creation in 2003.

The RDA invested £9.75 million in a pioneering Innovation and Technology Centre at the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Waverley, South Yorkshire to act as a creative epicentre for the region's advanced engineering and metals industries.

Yorkshire Forward helped to attract more than 40 foreign companies to invest in Yorkshire and Humber last year, creating 2,570 new jobs and making it a record-breaking year for the region.

Figures published by UK Trade and Investment also revealed that a total of 54 foreign-owned firms invested in Yorkshire and Humber, creating and safeguarding almost 3,800 jobs - the best figures since Yorkshire Forward was established five years ago.

Businesses across the region are now able to get free training for their staff and cash to cover their time off after Yorkshire Forward announced a £9million funding package.

The Employer Training Programme was not due to be rolled out across the whole of Yorkshire and Humber until 2006 when the Government will fund the scheme nationally, but Yorkshire Forward decided to finance the scheme a year early.

Updated: 16:17 Wednesday, July 27, 2005