Staffordshire CC is all set to bring the county's inward investment promotion agency in-house. Since it was formed in 1996, InStaffs UK has helped bring 320 new companies and more than 20,000 new jobs to Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent. The future of the service has been in doubt since funding has dried up in difficult times for public spending. But Staffordshire CC's cabinet looks set to ensure its continuation by taking it over to join the council's broader economic regeneration operation. Cabinet member for economy, skills and enterprise, Mike Lawrence, said: ‘This is about getting maximum value for every pound from the taxpayer. ‘It means we can gain extra value from an even closer integration with Staffordshire's family of key economic development services.'
