Ken Livingstone is England's best known elected mayor

The New Local Government Network says far from promising much but delivering little, the group of 12 English mayors have made significant improvements.

Now the network says it is time the idea was used in more big cities.

It says 57% of people knew the elected mayor's name, an awareness rate twice that for traditional council leaders.

Tough decisions

Middlesbrough's high-profile mayor Ray Mallon, a former Cleveland police chief, cut crime by 18% in his first year.

Hartlepool's mayor Stuart Drummond, who ran for office dressed as a monkey, is one of several to use hit squads to clear streets of litter, abandoned cars and graffiti.

Ex-police chief Mallon's measures have cut crime in Middlesbrough

Stoke-on-Trent mayor's Mike Wolfe's Better Services Fund, dubbed "Mike's millions" by the local press, will include the building of a new skate park, improvements to the city's alleyways and the removal of chewing gum from the city centre.

The independent think-tank's study says mayors have not shied away from tougher decisions, including the closure of schools and care homes.

The mayors, who include Ken Livingstone in London, are much better known than traditional council leaders and tend to align themselves more with the public in holding the council to account.

But amid fears that government enthusiasm for the idea has waned, the study says it should be tried in other areas, including more big cities.

More accountable?

It suggests that in this year's local elections, voters should be asked if they want a referendum on having an elected mayor in their area.

In the public's eye, they are no longer the anonymous, non-directly accountable leader of the council, but the person with whom the buck stops Anna Randle New Local Government Network

Anna Randle, head of organisation at the New Local Government Network and author of the report, said: "Regardless of how each individual mayor is performing, their increased visibility as 'mayor of the area' is influencing how people judge their performance.

"In the public's eye, they are no longer the anonymous, non-directly accountable leader of the council, but the person with whom the buck stops.

"Such a profile has the potential to strengthen democratic accountability.

"It is clear that many good things are emerging in the mayoral authorities and that the main fears expressed about the model, both before and in the light of the elections, have not emerged in practice.

"The government would do well to consider experimenting with the model further, and preferably in at least one major city," Ms Randle added.