A JOB-creation and business support agency serving Furness is to close suddenly at the end of December having failed to get an answer on a key £1 million grant.

Furness Enterprise, based at Lindal-in-Furness, was set up in 1991 on the back of major redundancies at the Barrow shipyard but helped companies in the town and nearby Dalton, Lindal and Ulverston, among others.

It says it has helped businesses create 10,500 jobs during its 23-year history but has 'run out of road'.

It says a fresh bid submitted in June to the Coastal Communities Fund for just over £1 million would have seen it carry on for a further two-and-a-half years.

But the grant has 'not yet been determined' despite what FE said were 'intensive efforts to achieve a successful result'.

It means seven job losses at the company after its board agreed to wind down the company before it ground to a halt through lack of cash.

Its chief executive, Harry Knowles, 66, was expecting to retire in 2015 and hand over to a successor.

Barrow MP John Woodcock described the news as a 'tragedy' and said he would be organising a meeting with Communities Secretary Eric Pickles.

The grant is given ministerial approval at the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and managed by the Big Lottery Fund.

Mr Knowles, executive director of Furness Enterprise, said: “I am very grateful to the Coastal Communities Fund which enabled us to continue a range of activities of major benefit to the Furness economy.

"It is very disappointing that our bid for a new supply chain initiative which would enable this area to capture much more of the investment benefit for local companies from major projects is still not determined after five months.

"We have simply ‘run out of road’ as a company and that means the loss of considerable expertise built up over many years by a highly skilled small team.

"When Furness Enterprise was set up in 1991, the local and national economic climate was very challenging with massive redundancies in this area and new opportunities very limited.

"Now the local economic situation is much improved and the opportunities much greater. It was our fervent hope that we would play a major role in getting the best out of these great opportunities for local businesses but this is now very unlikely.”

"We've left it as long as we can."

"It's ironic at the time of greatest opportunity for the area in terms of investment here through BAe and GSK, we were looking to focus on the wonderful supply chain investment opportunities."

Steve Pryer, Chairman of Furness Enterprise said: "The Board of Directors have given all their support to the Executive Team as they have worked hard to secure future funding. Unfortunately this has not come about so an organisation which has worked hard to secure jobs and prosperity for the Furness area, has to close. The Board wants to thank the Furness Enterprise team and all our partners for their tremendous work and support since 1991”.

Over the last two years, using core funding from the CCF, Furness Enterprise says it has provided 'an intensive programme of assistance to businesses and individuals'.

It has led to 215 jobs being created and 189 unemployed people given specific training with financial support to help them get a job. 

During its history, it has also played an advocacy role for the Furness area and says it has safeguarded 4,000 jobs and helped 1,500 unemployed individuals back into work.

Barrow's Labour MP John Woodcock said: "Furness Enterprise has done remarkable work in securing and safeguarding jobs and investment in our area for two decades - the loss will be keenly felt by local businesses, for whom Furness Enterprise has been an immensely valuable resource.

"With many millions of pounds of investment heading for our part of Cumbria, Furness Enterprise was poised to play a vital role in ensuring that local employers and families were able to benefit from the jobs and opportunities that will accompany it.

"It is a tragedy is that this closure has been triggered by the government's failure to respond to Furness Enterprise's bid for business support that our community needs.  I am seeking an urgent meeting with Eric Pickles to discuss the status of that bid for vital resources and whether, at this late stage, anything can be done to salvage this vital asset for Furness."

The DCLG is preparing a comment in response.