A THIRSK Racecourse event which lifts the lid on how to win lucrative contracts from the public sector is expected to be a sell-out.

People have been snapping up the 100 places available for the North Yorkshire County Council event, titled Selling to the Public Sector tomorrow.

The procurement needs of the public sector will be explained and basic training in the tendering process will be offered, with a practical series of workshops throughout the morning.

The event comes as North Yorkshire County Council spends around £240 million each year on goods and services, from window cleaning to catering, and transport to ICT.

The NHS spends a further £5.2 billion in the Yorkshire and Humber region annually.

A county council spokesman said: "Many small firms remain unsure of how to tender for public sector contracts and may be missing out, according to Business Link York and North Yorkshire.

The event includes a seminar by Ian Beverley, director of Northern Procur-ement Group, which advises the county council.

Updated: 10:00 Thursday, March 02, 2006