STAFF at East Lancashire's training and Enterprise Council were celebrating today after being named the best in the country.

ELTEC beat 73 other training and enterprise councils in England across a range of targets covering areas like services for school leavers and help for businesses.

The Government publishes annual performance statistics for TECs on 19 different measures. Overall ELTEC scored the best results.

"Our primary aim is to see results locally with businesses enjoying profitable growth by improved competitiveness, jobs created and saved and qualifications gained," said ELTEC's chief executive Mark Price, who revealed the news at a dinner for local business leaders at the Dunkenhalgh last night where American business guru Prof Mortimer Feinberg was guest speaker. "However to receive national acclaim for the success of our partnership with other local organisations is extremely pleasing for all concerned."

The performance statistics also revealed that ELTEC's XTEND scheme for young people has been named top in England for the fourth year running.

The news comes just weeks after the Government announced the end of TECs, which are to be replaced by Learning and Skills Councils.

More than 200 business leaders attended last night's dinner and heard Prof Feinberg talk about how to use business psychology to help change the way organisations work.

And Prof Feinberg said that with the unprecedented expansion of the Internet, information had never been more important.

He stressed that the key to a successful enterprise was the capacity to re-use, unscramble, store and transmit information. To do that education was vital, not just for the staff but for the managers also.

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