COMMUNITY leaders yesterday hailed the transformation of a once run-down Darlington estate, as they marked the end of an era.

The Firthmoor Community Partnership Board held its final meeting before being formally disbanded to make way for a new organisation.

From next month, the group will become the Eastbourne Community Partnership Board and cover a wider area.

Members met at the Maidendale House Community Centre yesterday and heard chairman Bill Cook pay tribute to their work in recent years.

In 1998, local volunteers - determined to revitalise an estate blighted by crime, vandalism and anti-social behaviour - began applying for Government funding.

After securing millions of pounds of Single Regeneration Budget cash, the group helped to dramatically turn around Firthmoor's fortunes.

The estate now has a £1.3m community centre, new homes and a £2m primary school. Numerous other projects are on-going.

An emotional Mr Cook said yesterday: "I look back six-and-a-half years ago to this estate and I remember, night after night, fire engines coming onto the estate.

"There was empty housing everywhere, people just wanted to be away.

"But look around the estate today, dreams can come true."

Praising the work of local residents and organisations, he added: "Success does not just happen. It takes leadership, determination, and dedication.

"Our success has been because of the hard work over the four-and-a-half-years of the Single Regeneration Budget project.

"We are expanding the partnership to cover the Eastbourne area, so now we are faced with a new challenge."

The meeting also heard about the positive progress in local schemes, with dozens of people having been helped into employment by the Firthmoor Into Work initiative.

Outgoing Firthmoor neighbourhood manager Sally Forth said: "I really don't think we have seen the estate looking better."

The new Eastbourne group comes into effect next month and its progress will be reviewed every six months.