DAYS spent waiting for workmen to arrive could be coming to an end - thanks to two North Yorkshire businesswomen.

As people's lifestyles become more hectic by the moment, Jane Shepherd and Penny Hudson seized on an idea to cut the stress out of everyday tasks and help time-starved people cope with their busy lives.They created Lifestyle Solutions York, based at Aldwark, near Easingwold, last June, to do the jobs, which, in the past, were considered the domain of housewives.

The business aims to take care of tasks that Jane and Penny term as "household time stealers". Penny said: "Buy our time and we will accept deliveries, oversee contractors completing installations, repairs or maintenance - and let you know what's happening.

"We take and collect dry cleaning, buy and unpack groceries, order flowers, collect parcels and buy and wrap gifts."

Lifestyle Solutions covers a 30-mile radius from its Aldwark office.

Penny said: "People expect to find a business like ours in a city but we realise that many city workers choose to live in the country where access to services is more difficult."

Since the business was launched seven months ago, word of mouth has helped it expand. Jane said: "As more people use us we are finding personal recommendations our growing our business. This is really important to us and we are here to build lasting relationships with our customers."

Updated: 10:13 Thursday, January 29, 2004