A £7 MILLION cash boost has been handed to Worcestershire - including a major business park expansion and funding for 600 new apprentices.

The Government last night announced a surprise extension to its Local Growth Fund project, a kitty worth £2 billion a year across the UK.

Back in July last year this county secured £47 million from a 'wish list' topping £250 million, and last night ministers agreed to hand over another £7.2 million, which will fund:

- 20 acres of new employment land at Evesham Vale Park, which will focus on high-tech agriculture

- Cash for an additional 3,000 students to get 'high skill' qualifications at further education colleges or alternative training providers between now and 2020, which will focus primarily on engineering

- Funding for 600 more apprenticeships over the same time period

- The launch of a new grant funding scheme to encourage entrepreneurs and the expansion of existing businesses

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said last night "a quiet revolution is underway in Worcestershire", with the extra funds taking the growth fund handout to £54 million so far.

The county council and Worcestershire's Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), which have teamed up on the £250 million 'wish list' between now and 2021, will now work through the details.

Mr Clegg said: "A quiet revolution is underway in Worcestershire as growth fund deals signal the death of the culture where Whitehall calls the shots. "I’ve seen for myself the difference it makes to give Worcestershire more power over skills, over business support, over infrastructure spending.

"I'm delighted to announce the expansion of the Worcestershire growth deal ."

Councillor Simon Geraghty, county council deputy leader and cabinet member for economy, skills and infrastructure, said: "The (new) schemes which have been awarded funding are outlined in the county’s 10-year strategic economic plan and so will benefit Worcestershire’s economy for years to come.

"The funding will also further open up commercial developments by improving infrastructure with a particular focus on sites such as Vale Park in Evesham.

"This is great news for the whole of Worcestershire."

Peter Pawsey, chair of Worcestershire's LEP, said: "The fact that Worcestershire is receiving an additional £7.2 million to the original growth deal allocation of £47 million is great news for the county.

"It will promote business growth, create and safeguard an estimated 400 to 500 jobs and leverage £15 million to £25 million from the public and private sectors as well as further improve skills by 2020."

Prime Minister David Cameron said: "Because the money will be in the control of a partnership of local community, business and civic leaders it means it will go on the things that really matter to people and businesses here."

* Across the UK an extra £1 billion has been handed out today, with Gosport, on the south coast in Hampshire one of the big winners after securing £15.8 million on a huge project to unlock congestion.

Elsewhere, £25 million will help fund the development of a National Maritime Systems Centre of Excellence in Portsmouth.

And £3 million will help fund an aviation academy in East Anglia, while £5m is being handed to the Institute for Advanced Manufacturing at Nottingham University and £4 million is going into expanding a 'business incubation' facility in Bristol.

Around £6 million has gone towards new housing and jobs creation in the Black Country, while £8.7 million is going into new training opportunities in Birmingham and Solihull.

Hereford, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin, which made its own Marches bid, has been handed another £7.7 million today, taking its growth fund total to £83 million so far.

It includes a new link road for Hereford city centre and M54 Junction 4 improvements near Telford.