THOUSANDS of council house tenants across Sedgefield borough will get to vote on the future of their homes.

Sedgefield Borough Council yesterday decided to put a proposed shake-up of the ownership and management of its 9,200 homes to a public ballot.

The council is considering the large-scale voluntary transfer of its entire social housing stock to a non-profit making company - Sedgefield Housing Ltd.

A document has already been produced for tenants, which formally outlined the proposal and there has also been an information roadshow, public meetings, home visits, newsletters and a video.

Councillors yesterday heard that the 71 comments received focused mainly on tenants' views but raised no issues to hold up the next phase.

A stage two offer will now be issued detailing any changes and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott will be contacted.

Tenants then have 28 days to respond before the Government makes a decision based on the majority result of a ballot.

Sedgefield Borough Council's chief executive, Norman Vaulks, said: "The key thing is that tenants use their vote.

"We'll write to the Electoral Reform Service asking them to hold a vote as quickly as possible. Hopefully, we'll have a result by the end of July.

"If it is 'yes', we'd expect to transfer in April next year."

The council believes the transfer would have three advantages - improved living standards for tenants, job security for the existing housing workforce and the release of council resources to tackle other issues.

Council leader Bob Fleming said: "If tenants vote in favour of the proposal, it would unlock £129.7m for repairs and improvements in the first ten years - that's £67.2m more than the council could afford.

"Sedgefield Housing would be able to get all the money it needed, unlike the council, because rent and money raised from selling council houses would stay in the borough instead of 75 per cent going to the Government."

But some tenants are concerned about the proposed changes, believing the council should keep ownership and control of the housing stock.

They also fear there will be less accountability through elected councillors - though five members and five elected tenants would sit on the board of Sedgefield Housing.