More than £15m will be spent on carrying out improvements to the exteriors of council properties in Renfrewshire this year.

The local authority has said the improvements will include upgrades to roofs, rendering, guttering, downpipes, over-cladding and door entry systems.

The work is also part of Renfrewshire Council's £138m Delivering Housing Improvements programme. This five-year programme aims to ensure all of the council's housing stock meets the Scottish Housing Quality Standard (SHQS) by 2015.

To date, some £28m has been spent on external improvements on around 2,350 properties since 2010. Over the next 12 months, a further 2,500 properties are expected to benefit.

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Councillor Tommy Williams, Convener of Renfrewshire Council's Housing and Community Safety Policy Board, said: "The Delivering Housing Improvements programme is a massive investment into our tenants' homes. Thousands of properties have received upgrades both internally and externally so far and over the next year we'll be investing more than £15milllion in external improvements across different types of properties.

"Not only will these improve the look of our properties, they will make our tenants' homes more modern, safe and energy efficient. We are also working closely with owners in blocks where there is shared ownership in order to carry out major improvements which they will benefit from too. This will be the final phase of the external works to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard."

In addition to the external works programme, the Delivering Housing Improvements programme has included major internal upgrades including new kitchens, bathrooms and rewiring and upgrading central heating systems in council housing.

(JP/MH)