TAXPAYERSwill fork out up to £3,000 to pay for new carpets and curtains for BBC staff moving from London to Salford.

And staff in London with houses to sell will also benefit from a guaranteed house purchase scheme, under relocation terms for those prepared to head North.

The payments for curtains and carpets, still subject to Inland Revenue approval, will be available to any of the 1,630 BBC staff on contracts who are selling up to shift to Greater Manchester.

It is one payment among a package of incentives, paid for out of the licence fee, to entice staff to move North.

The BBC said it is offering a 'comprehensive package of financial and practical support'.

The TaxPayers' Alliance described the package as 'a slap in the face to the ordinary taxpayer forced to subsidise such generosity when they are facing the consequences of hard economic times'.

The BBC is moving five departments; Sport, Children's, Radio 5 Live, learning and parts of a department called, Future, Media and Technology to a new site, MediaCityUK, currently being built at Salford Quays.

All staff must make a decision whether to move or not by September 30, with most relocating between April and December 2011.

Details of the relocation payments were released after an application by the Press Association under the Freedom of Information Act, made law by the Labour government in 2000.

The package includes the BBC employing a specialist relocation company, Cartus, with the guaranteed house purchase scheme (GHPS) including payment of solicitors' fees, survey fees and stamp duty.

Reclaimable

Also reclaimable will be payments for Home Information Packs, search fees, building society charges and mortgage arrangement fees.

Payments of £350 per trip to travel to Manchester for house hunting or family visits are also reclaimable.

Removal costs will be paid, and the BBC is also offering a 'full packing and unpacking service'. Any storage costs will be paid for up to three months.

Other benefits include help to get spouses or partners jobs in the area and specialist help with schooling for staff children.

Staff who qualify and do move will also get another £5,000 'relocation payment' on top for any 'additional costs'.

Anyone on continuing contracts or fixed term contracts with at least two years to run will qualify for the relocation package.

The BBC says it expects the guaranteed house purchase scheme will only apply to a 'minority' of staff moving north, but the exact numbers are not yet known.

Some staff on short-term contracts, or who do not own a house will not benefit from the scheme.

Staff who do not qualify will get a maximum of £8,000 for the move.

But anyone currently receiving thousands of pounds in London Weighting will be allowed to keep the payments despite moving outside the capital.

The GHPS scheme is for BBC employees who are selling a house in Greater London to 'ease the problems and stresses' of moving home, the BBC has told staff.

Under the scheme Cartus will pay sellers up to 95% of the market price of the property based on surveyors valuations.

When the property is resold, the BBC will incur any loss on the sale price.

In the event of a gain the seller will receive up to 100% of the market value. Anything above that goes back to the BBC to offset costs.

Exact details of the contract between Cartus and the BBC has been withheld by the broadcaster, citing commercial reasons.

The BBC has told the Government it is committed to the move North as it 'addresses concerns that the organisation is not fully representative of the peoples of the UK'.

Matthew Sinclair, Research Director at the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "Between maintaining a London Weighting for staff no longer in London, providing handsome payments to cover every possible moving expense and guaranteeing staff against falls in the value of London homes these payments are a slap in the face to the ordinary taxpayer forced to subsidise such generosity when they are facing the consequences of hard economic times.

"The BBC needs to realise that providing this kind of expensive subsidy to staff at the taxpayers' expense isn't acceptable."

But a BBC spokesman said: "The BBC is fully aware of the current harsh financial climate, particularly in relation to house prices, and is very conscious of the need to demonstrate value for money in any scheme to licence payers.

Support

"Like all responsible employers, we will provide support to staff which is both fair but also affordable."

A number of financial details requested were withheld under exemptions from the FOI application as the BBC said disclosure would "prejudice" their commercial interests.

The BBC is understood to be trying to renegotiate some of the terms it offered staff to leave London because of the economic downturn.

The corporation told union negotiators four years ago that staff agreeing to move North would be able to sell their houses to the company for 95% of the market value.

It is understood that the BBC is now trying to reduce the figure to 85%, making a move less attractive for staff.

Gerry Morrissey, general secretary of the broadcasting workers' union Bectu, defended the original relocation package, saying that in many cases staff wanted to work in London.

"It is right that they have a reasonable relocation package because some will be worse off anyway, especially if their partners have to give up their job to move.

"If the BBC doesn't make the offer attractive enough they will have to make workers redundant."

A BBC spokesperson said: "We are fully aware of the harsh economic situation but we do need to move significant numbers of staff to a new operational centre in Salford.

"We seek to offer relocation assistance which is comparable to that offered across the private and public sectors and within clear limits.

"A review of the assistance available, in light of the current difficult economic climate, is currently being undertaken with a view to announcing any necessary revisions to the relocation package in the coming weeks. This is important because some staff will shortly be making decisions about the move.

"The BBC's move to Salford will provide a huge boost to the creative economies of the North and any assistance for staff must be affordable and deliver value for money."