A VOLUNTARY residents' group has been given a pat on the back for reviving a sinking community.

Residents in Eston were plagued with vandalism and high levels of crime.

But, when the Eston Residents' Association was set up, people in the area joined in to help brighten the place up.

Eight years on and the group of volunteers have been selected for the Duke of York's Community Initiative Award.

It follows a visit by award assessors to Eston to look at the group and its projects. The Duke of York will present the award later this year.

The initiative described the Eston Residents' Association as a "sustainable, all-inclusive project dedicated to the present and future."

Association chairwoman Ann Higgins said she was overjoyed, not only for the association, but for the whole community.

She added: "This acknowledgement shows how a blighted community can come back with so much determination and make it a better place to live."