MENTALLY ill people have won a Euro cash jackpot to boost their chances of getting training and a job.

And cross-continent links will be a key part of a new employment and education service.

The borough has won £250,000 from the European Social Fund which will allow the council's social services department to work on a range of local schemes.

The scheme will also involve Bury Health Care NHS Trust, Bury College, the Community Education Service and Bury Chamber of Trade.

Now Bury Employment Support and Training (BEST), which prepared the bid, is looking to link up with similar organisations in the EU, which is a condition of the award.

Once the groups have come together they will share their expertise, allowing successes in Bury to be tried out in countries such as France or Germany.

Coun John Costello, chairman of social services, said the cash will pay for jobs and training schemes for the next two years for people with long-term mental health problems.

"Competition for funding was high and our staff are to be congratulated on their success," he said.

"With our partners, we hope to set up return-to-work courses, provide basic training and short-term employment opportunities as well as raise awareness with employers."

Coun Costello added: "There will also be a research project about the retention of staff who have experienced mental health problems.

"By working with European partners we will be able to take advantage of the information available from their schemes and vice versa."

The news was also welcomed by a "delighted" Mr Huw Davies, manager of BEST.

"This comes at a really good time for us and is a boost to the general strategy being developed in the borough," he said.

"The project will involve a number of local organisations and shows the value of joint initiatives.

"Now we need to find European partners before we are given final approval. We expect to do that in the next few weeks."

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