BURNLEY will lose a massive £1.1 million this year on rent lost from empty council houses - a further £18,000 more than expected.

The town now has nearly 600 empty council homes - more than 10 per cent of the entire stock - and the weekly rent loss is approaching £24,000.

The void properties figure includes nearly 300 which have been long term empty and are earmarked for demolition in a major clean up of the town's problem estates.

Latest figures reveal that most empty municipal houses are in the Central area, with 188 void properties and the West End Estate - Stoops, Hargher Clough and Barclay - which have nearly 300.

The cost of securing empty houses is rising, with measures such as shuttering and fitting alarms estimated at £142,000 in the year to March 31, 2000.

The length of time it takes for minor works to properties prior to them being re-let is also extending, from an average of nine weeks in August to well over 10 weeks at the end of September.

The average for the West End and Central estates is more than 14 weeks, the statistics show.

A recent independent report commissioned by the new Burnley and Padiham Housing company which will take control of municipal housing in a £74 million transfer in February, was critical of the authority's repairs an re-letting performance.

The new landlords who intend to spend £30 million in five years on repairs and improvements to the 5,300-home stock it takes over, have made continued letting and early re-letting of houses a top priority.

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