A COUNCIL'S new leader set himself up as a people's champion when he told a town that he was going to save its threatened services.

On Monday, Durham County Council's leader, Albert Nugent, appeared at a public meeting in Shildon, one of the region's most deprived areas, and told residents he felt they had had a rough ride at the hands of his predecessor, Ken Manton.

He promised care home residents that he would save the town's Hackworth House, and said he had already set the wheels in motion to keep the Shildon Centre - another of the town's vital services - open.

He went on to promise to scrutinise the county council's decision to withdraw funding from children's facility The Holly Hill family centre, and vowed to look at the possibilities of renegotiating a lease on the town's learner pool, which closed in January.

He said: "Shildon has had a rough time in the past with different closures, but that has changed.

"As far as I am concerned, Hackworth House is safe and we will look at everything else."

A consultation exercise looking at the future of Hackworth House, East Green, West Auckland, and Lynwood House, Lanchester, will continue to its completion in June before a decision is taken by a full cabinet meeting in the summer.

Coun Nugent said 35 members had voted to keep the homes open and it was now his party's policy not to close them.

He said money would also be made available to fund the Shildon Centre, which was set up 21 years ago to help the town recover from the closure of Shildon Wagon Works, despite previous plans by the council to stop funding it next year.

Since the closure of the works, Shildon's employment figure has suffered, and it is in the ten per cent of most deprived towns in the country.

But last night, residents and staff at Hackworth House were celebrating.

June Vayro, 70, has been a resident for three years.

She said: "This is the news we have been waiting for. We would like to thank everyone who has supported us in our fight to keep our home.

"Being at Hackworth House is like living in a five-star hotel with our own little community.''

A council spokesman said last night: "If the cabinet commits to funding the Shildon Centre in 2007-8, then finding the necessary money will become part of the next annual budget-building process.

"The decision to close Holly Hill family centre was made as part of this year's budget-making process.

"If there are to be any changes to that budget or the individual decisions made as part of it, they would have to be re-considered by the cabinet and the full council itself."