THOUSANDS of council tenants are to enjoy a multi-million pound facelift to their homes.

Coun Sue Sunderland, City of York housing chief, has agreed to the plans, which will see the council retain control of its housing stock - with £65.2 million spent on homes over the next six years.

The improvements will include new bathrooms, kitchens and maintenance work.

The move has won overwhelming support from the Tenant Participation Compact Panel and the York Federation of Residents' and Community Associations.

Pat Holmes, federation chair and panel member, said she was pleased the council was to remain landlord in York. "I'm very pleased with this," she said. "I've been a council tenant for 40 years and I've always found them very fair."

During a consultation in 2002, 93 per cent of tenants voted to keep the council as their landlord, rather than transferring their homes to a Registered Social Landlord or another organisation to manage on the council's behalf.

Most of the money - £42.5 million - will be spent bringing council homes up to the Government's "Decent Homes" standard.

Another £2.2 million will be spent on assistance to older and disabled people, and £9.7 million on housing improvement grants.

Jim Crook, the council's community services director, told the housing meeting: "The standards we are aiming for would exceed the Decent Homes standard."

Of the council's 8,000 properties, 2,158 failed to reach the standard in the most recent survey in October last year.

Latest figures show that the council has nearly 4,000 housing applications on its system, of which 1,864 require further information before joining the list of offers or have been deferred.

But the council still needs to find £4.1 million to bring all its houses up to the Government's standard.

Coun Ruth Potter, opposition spokeswoman for housing, told last night's meeting she was "disappointed" there was a "large deficit" in cash.

"I would like to see how we are going to meet this deficit," she said.

Steve Waddington, the council's assistant community services director, said the money could be found by various means, including making "efficiency savings" elsewhere in the council's budget.

Outside the meeting, he said more cash could be found by bringing down the council's rent arrears and if there was an increase in right-to-buy sales.

The council's business plan for improvements will now be submitted to the regional Government Office.

It will then be updated every year.

Council leader Steve Galloway said: "We're pleased that we've been able to come up with a programme of housing improvements which satisfies not only the Government's Decent Homes standard but also, through York Pride, the council's standards.

"We believe that's the best way we can repay the confidence shown by tenants."

Glad to see council keep control

BARMAN Tony Richardson, 44, lives in a three-bed council house in Cambridge Street, off Holgate Road, York, with his wife, Elaine, and daughter, Megan, nine.

As part of the council's rolling maintenance programme to bring homes up to the decent homes' standard, his home underwent council renovation last year, along with others in his road.

It has been rewired, with double glazing and central heating put in, along with a new kitchen and bathroom.

The renovations have made a "big difference" to tenants in his street, said Mr Richardson.

He has been a council tenant since 1981, and, as chairman of the Cambridge Street Residents' Association, has been involved in the consultation process about whether the council should retain control of its housing stock.

"I think it's a good thing the council has kept control," he said.

"I've been in meetings about council houses being sold off to private landlords and it was frightening.

"I think this will be good - it will bring all houses up to scratch.

"The £65 million will do a lot of good. At the end of the day, I've no intention of moving, but it's nice to think that if I did have to move I'd get somewhere else what I've got here."

Meanwhile, part-time cabbie Neil Lacy, 50, who lives in a three-bed council house in Seventh Avenue, Tang Hall, with wife, Sue, and five children, aged 11 to 23, said his house - one of only three council homes left in his road - had received some upgrades over the years, but needed large-scale renovation to meet modern demands.

Asked for his reaction on the council's pledge to spend £65 million on bringing council homes up to the decent homes' standard by 2011, he said: "I'll believe it when I see it. We've been supposed to have our kitchen done for about 18 years.

"I'm delighted as long as they do something. Kitchens, bathrooms and toilets are important - the bedrooms you can make nice yourself."

Neil said he had been a council tenant for about 23 years. His house had been fitted with central heating about ten years ago.

He said: "Nothing seems to fit in our house. None of the doors fit. They upgraded the windows about two years ago, but they didn't upgrade the doors.

"We've been waiting for a new kitchen since we moved in. It would have to be a good thing if our house did get renovated.

"It really wants some internal structure."

Updated: 10:11 Wednesday, April 06, 2005