COUNCIL houses will receive £155m worth of improvements planned by their new owner after residents endorsed a transfer.

In a ballot conducted by Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, 89 per cent of tenants voted to transfer the ownership and management of council housing stock to Coast and Country Housing.

The result, announced by council leader Dave Walsh and the Mayor, Councillor Vilma Collins, means the firm can carry out its plan to spend £155m on modernisation in the first five years of a 30-year scheme.

More than 70 per cent of the borough's 14,000 tenants voted in what was its most intensive consultation exercise to date.

As part of the process, housing officers carried out door-to-door canvassing and there were public meetings and regular bulletins.

Councillor Walsh said: "This is a major milestone for Redcar and Cleveland.

"The tenants' vote will ensure a massive improvement in their quality of life."

The transfer, which is the first of its kind on Teesside, was suggested by the council, because it lacks the necessary £50m to bring its housing up to standard.

While Government regulations prohibit authorities from borrowing money, private firms can borrow from banks and building societies.

The new company will operate under a 15-member board of directors made up of five tenants, five councillors and five independent members.

Coun Walsh said: "The decision to back the proposal has had to be a balanced judgement.

"The turn-out and the vote in favour of the transfer amply illustrates that tenants agree with our thinking."

An added bonus of the deal will be a jobs boost. Some of the council's multi-million pound allocation from the Government's Neighbourhood Renewal Fund will create an integrated employment and training scheme geared towards the construction industry.

Its participants will provide the workforce needed to carry out the improvements.

Included in the plans are installing double glazing in the 9,300 homes that lack it, installing 4,000 new heating systems, replacing 7,200 kitchens and 5,400 bathrooms, rewiring 9,000 homes and fitting 6,300 new external doors.