With 45,000 new homes being built in Barnet over the next decade, small borough-based companies could be in line for millions of pounds worth of contracts. But many of them are unaware of opportunities offered by major regeneration projects like Cricklewood, or do not know how to put together a decent bid, according to Supply London, a branch of the London Development Agency.

Supply London is offering free advice to small and medium-sized businesses, which it believes do not have the know-how or contacts to take advantage of the £3.5 billion being invested in regeneration projects in Barnet, and would often miss out on large government and public-private-partnerships projects.

Ruth Brothwell, Supply London manager, believes millions of pounds are up for grabs in the borough. "We try and help small and medium-size enterprises to bridge, what I call, the knowledge gap'," she said. "There are millions of pounds in contracts available."

Supply London will not be putting businesses in touch with transnationals like Multiplex, responsible for the Cricklewood and Wembley Stadium redevelopments, but will organise meetings with other companies further down the supply chain'.

Employing borough-based businesses is also beneficial to the major developers, as research has shown that the work is often of a higher standard.

Supply London focuses on six areas where smaller businesses often fall down quality, health and safety, environmental concerns, equal opportunities, financial planning, and e-business and provides advice on how to overcome these failures. For more information visit www.supplylondon.com/toolkit.htm