MILLIONS of pounds could be re-invested into the Dudley borough if council plans to 'buy local' come to fruition.

Council chiefs are planning on setting up a Community Wealth Building Unit, which would see the council team up with the police, NHS, fire service, private sector businesses, housing associations, tourist attractions and colleges to offer work to local contractors where possible during procurement processes.

The plan, dubbed 'the Preston model', saw Preston City Council return almost £200 million to the Lancashire city's economy by procuring services locally.

Councillor Qadar Zada, leader of the council, said: "The Preston Model has been enormously successful in completely revitalising the economy in the city.

"A lot of local authorities are looking at it as a model of best practice and we want to evolve and develop a Dudley model that will work for this borough to have similarly positive impact.

"We need to get partners on board, as in some cases they will have much more spending power than we will have as a council on our own.

"But if we can do that the benefits could be huge for the borough’s economy, which is really exciting for everyone.”

Initial meetings have been held at the council and a report is expected to go before the council’s cabinet in the coming months.