The invention relates to a method for blind decoding control signal candidates, preconfigured by a base station for a user equipment in a control region of each subframe. A plurality of starting positions is preconfigured between two subsequent subframe boundaries. The subframe is either a partial subframe or a full subframe. A first set of control signal candidates is preconfigured for the UE for the first starting position, and further sets of control signal candidates are preconfigured for the remaining starting positions. The number of control signal candidates of at least one of the further sets is less than the number of control signal candidates of the first set. For each subframe, the UE, for at least the first starting position out of the plurality of starting positions, blind decodes the set of control signal candidates preconfigured for that starting position to receive the one or more control signals.