THE headlines are full of depression, recession, high-profile building projects put on hold and long-standing firms in administration.

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But while all this drama has been unfolding, determined entrepreneurs have been building their own futures and improving other people's lives along the way.

When Daniel Lee set up Pharmacy2U in Leeds he revolutionised the country's medical practices.

The Leeds 29-year-old, along with partners Dr Julian Harrison and Steven Dobson, established the UK's first internet pharmacy, providing an electronic repeat prescription service so people could request them without leaving their homes.

The firm is now the UK's largest internet and mail-order pharmacy, employs more than 60 local staff and each month around 35,000 orders are posted from Whinmoor to customers across the country.

In the last year more than 250 GP practices signed up to Pharmacy2U, turnover was £15m and sales are predicted to more than double in the next 18 months.

The firm was in Harehills but moved to Hawthorn Park Business Centre in Whinmoor in 2005, after Sharing the Success helped the firm access funding.

In a similar way, but in a completely different field, Danielle Watkins decided to set up her own dance classes in Middleton when her class ended.

The 21-year-old attended Sharing the Success workshops and was awarded funding to provide Dynamite Dance and Cheerleading Squad – a much-loved community service in a deprived area.

Ian Harris, of Otley, worked for a company translating websites when he realised there was an opportunity for people who provided search engine marketing for translated websites and set up Search Laboratory, in Chapel Allerton, three years ago.

The company now boasts a turnover of £1.8m, employs around 15 Leeds staff and has a contract with Novell, one of the biggest software companies in the US.

Mr Harris, who has an MSc in internet technologies from the University of Leeds, was awarded funding from Sharing the Success for an IT support system.

The Keep Leeds Working campaign is a response to the difficulties many readers are facing because of the recession, when jobs are being shed and finding work is difficult.

That's why the YEP has teamed up with Sharing the Success to highlight ways you can help turn bright ideas into money-makers.

Leeds Local Enterprise Growth Initiative (LEGI) programme aims to create new jobs and boost prosperity in disadvantaged communities.

Though Leeds city centre has been on the rise for more than a decade, many surrounding areas remain some of the country's most deprived neighbourhoods.

Sharing the Success wants to change all that, offering people opportunities that can change their lives.

Simon Brereton, programme manager for Sharing the Success, said schemes had ploughed cash into Harehills, Chapeltown and Belle Isle but had failed to raise employment rates there.

He said: "The whole of the theory behind the LEGI programme is that we try something else."

He said it was different because it targeted the people rather than the area and rather than seeing them as a problem, it sees them as an ocean of untapped potential.

Mr Brereton said: "It's about working with the same people but with a completely different ethos which says – we believe in you, we are going to help you to make a living.

"A lot of that is around business start-up.

"It's also about helping businesses already based in our target areas to be more successful."

And while plenty of firms might not be household names, there's certainly no shortage of enterprising people quietly trading their way out of the recession.

Thanks to Keep Leeds Working, there's no shortage of help for anyone who wants to follow in their footsteps.

To find out more pick up a YEP on Thursday for our 16-page supplement featuring everything you need to know about getting a business off the ground, including where to base it, how to get funding, who to ask for advice and how to expand.

For information go to www.yorkshireevening post.co.uk and scroll down to the Keep Leeds Working logo on the right-hand side.