Sheffield residents will be the ultimate winners after Sheffield City Council was given national recognition for the way it is building new homes across the city.

The Authority has been awarded Beacon status at a prestigious award ceremony in London last night.

Council leaders were given the award for their outstanding work in building Homes for the Future across the city.

Attractive modern housing, in well designed neighbourhoods, is critical to the economic regeneration of the city. And the Homes for the Future programme is about building on that.

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So far 9,000 obsolete homes have been knocked down across Sheffield to make way for at least 6,000 new, higher quality homes designed to higher standards of efficiency and sustainability.

These changes have been made following widespread consultation with local residents who told city leaders what it was they wanted.

The council has now been given a slice of £3m Government funding to expand its work and help other councils achieve the same status.

Cllr Bob McCann, Cabinet Member for Housing and Sustainable, Safer Communities said: "This should be good news for residents but ultimately they will be the judge on what we achieve.

"Local people are the most important judge rather than inspectors or the Government on what we are achieving for them.

"Housing is a basic need which if it is not adequately met can restrict the potential of individuals.

"We hope this award proves that we are listening to the needs of real people by building homes that people want to live in and by doing that we are giving them further opportunities in terms of education, employment and health."

(CD/JM)