An £18.6 million programme of improvements to council homes has been approved by Chesterfield Borough Council.
The work will keep plans on track to achieve the Decent Homes Standard - which ensures properties are warm, protected from the weather and have reasonable modern facilities – for all council homes by March 2015.
Chesterfield Borough Council will use its own Operational Services Division to carry out some of the work but is also looking to award contracts to local companies in a move designed to support the local economy.
Cllr Jim McManus, Chesterfield Borough Council’s executive member for housing, said: “One of our corporate priorities is to ensure that everyone has access to a decent and affordable home.
“This significant investment is designed to do just that and improve the quality of life for our council house tenants.
“At the moment 84 per cent of our council homes meet the Decent Homes Standard and we want to get that up to 100 per cent and hopefully exceed that standard in many cases.”
The money will be spent on projects including:
£3.767 million to replace the central heating in 1,256 homes
£2.793 million to repair or replace roofs on 399 homes
£1.369 million to start the building of replacement sheltered housing
£1 million to replace kitchens in 206 homes
£1 million to replace bathrooms in 468 homes
£950,000 to rewire 700 homes
£559,000 to replace soffits and fascias and £280,000 to repair gutters at 399 homes
£119,000 to install external wall insulation at properties in Mastin Moor
Cllr McManus said: “I am particularly pleased that we will be looking to award some of the contracts for this work to local businesses.
“We are planning to hold a ‘Meet the Council’ day where businesses can discuss the opportunities available to them. We will publicise the details of this once it has been organised.”
Chesterfield Borough Council manages 10,000 council houses, flats, maisonettes and bungalows across 24 estates.
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