A £500,000 housing project, run by East Renfrewshire Council, has won a major national award.

The mixed tenure improvement scheme aims to improve blocks of mixed occupation; that is, council tenants, owner occupiers and private lets.

The project impressed judges and has been labelled "outstanding and innovative" in the National Good Practice Awards 2013, run by TPAS, the Tenant Participation Advisory Service.

The announcement was made at a special awards ceremony in St Andrews, and East Renfrewshire's accolade was in the 'Together: Developing Communities' section.

It was one of five awards made on the night, the council has said.

The project itself, which is the first of its kind in Scotland, was launched in April 2013 with a budget of just £500,000, and its aim is to improve mixed blocks of housing and then work with residents to create a lasting legacy. The legacy would mean residents taking more pride in where they live, and keeping up with improvements such as garden maintenance and keeping closes clean.

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Since its launch, more than 140 overgrown gardens have been tackled, more than 150 closes cleaned, more than 60 closes painted, and a range of improvements such as fence repairs and replacement, footpath improvement and tree and shrub removal have also been carried out. In addition, a dedicated 'hit squad' to tackle one-off requests from residents for work such as refuse clearance has been established, employing local young job seekers.

Convener for Housing, Councillor Danny Devlin, said: "I'm absolutely delighted that this scheme has been recognised at national level.

"The council's housing services team have come up with something that is not only innovative but has, without doubt, improved the lives of many of our residents.

"We have been leading from the front on dealing with the difficulties of maintaining mixed tenure estates - now other local authorities will be able to learn from our good practice.

"Well done to everybody, in our communities and within the council, for devising something that has delivered so many benefits."

The Good Practice Awards aim to recognise and reward tenants, residents, officers and landlords for their work and commitment in improving services and building stronger communities.

(JP/CD)