North East Lincolnshire Council has almost 9,000 houses

The Audit Commission has awarded North East Lincolnshire Council's housing repairs and maintenance service one star in its latest report.

It received none during the last round of inspections in May 2002 and was branded "poor" by the commission.

Now inspectors say the council's new commitment to customer satisfaction and the flexibility of its repair staff has elevated it to a "fair" standard.

We do not have the money to do the job we should be doing Russell Thompson Head of housing

But the report highlights a number of problems that still need to be addressed to make the service better.

It says staff efforts to make appointments are being undermined by poor IT systems and customer feedback is not being used to make improvements to the service.

Repair staff are also missing appointments and there is a backlog of jobs waiting to be completed.

Housing inspector Nick Atkin said: "Some difficult problems have been tackled since our last inspection and the council's new political leadership is now committed to improving services.

"However, we are worried that much recent improvement has relied on the work of external consultants, and we are not yet convinced the council's permanent staff have the necessary resources, skills and experience to build on what has already been achieved."

Housing ballot

North East Lincolnshire Council says it does not have the money to make the necessary improvements.

Instead, it wants to transfer its housing to a new organisation set up by the council called Shoreline Housing Partnership.

Tenants will be balloted on whether the ownership and management of their homes should be transferred in a ballot next year.

Russell Thompson, the council's head of housing, said: "As a council we do not have the money to do the job we should be doing.

"Transfer would free up money we need to take the housing service beyond one star and meet tenants' expectations."