The Chancellor of the Exchequer Rt Hon Gordon Brown has endorsed Wakefield District Local Strategic Partnership (LSP) with a clear message that Wakefield District works best when Wakefield District works together.

More than a hundred representatives of the police, faith communities, the primary care trusts, the business, community and voluntary sectors - who are all part of the LSP - attended the important launch event in Wakefield Town Hall.

Chair of the LSP Councillor Peter Box said: "The Chancellor's message gave a real boost to the Partnership - and we are committed to making sure that where by working together we can deliver more and better services, we will do that."

Since the launch, a further £2m of extra investment has been provided by Government to help the poorer parts of the District.

This funding will go towards 42 projects which form part of the Partnership's strategy to deal with some of the more serious problems facing neighbourhoods - such as high crime, unemployment, poor health, low educational attainment, poor housing and poor local environment.

The Neighbourhood Renewal Programme - a key responsibility of the LSP - is now going into its third year. Its aim is to 'kick start' changes in the way the Council and other statutory organisations such as the police and the health service prioritise what they do.