THE result of a tenants' vote on the transfer of council houses from the local authority to a community housing group should be known before the Burnley Fair holidays.

The council's housing committee has now formally approved the offer document which will be sent out to tenants next month.

Consultation time has been extended slightly for discussions with the government on the debt problem caused by the poor standard of the housing, how much money needs to be spent on improvements and the restrictions placed on future rents.

Tenants will now have more time to consider the offer before a ballot takes place in June.

Chairman of the housing stock transfer sub-committee Coun Donald Hall said the finished product represented an excellent offer to tenants.

Not only would it keep rents lower than if the properties remained with the council but £195 million would be spent on the transferred housing with £30 million in the first five years.

If Burnley and Padiham Community Housing takes over the properties, average rents would increase over the next five years from £46.90 to £57.06. If Burnley Council keeps control of the housing rents would go up to £83.34 in the same period even without the £30 million repairs, modernisation and improvement works programme.

The council's consultations have estimated that if the council carried out the same repairs programme rents would have to increase by 113 per cent over the same period.

Director of Community Services Ian Saville said: "Clearly the council could not do this because rents would not then be affordable.''

Burnley and Padiham Community Housing is also looking at freezing rents currently above £60 a week for a number of years to ensure that existing high rents remain affordable.

The B&PCH proposed spending programme includes: the installation of new central heating for all properties that do not have it; insulation; double glazing; security improvements; a five-year external painting programme and the start of a scheme to instal new kitchens and bathrooms including extractor fans and smoke detectors.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.