MORE than £3.5m has been granted to rejuvenate empty homes in Burnley.

The council will be getting around £3.5m from a Government fund to tackle the problem, which has seen some houses unoccupied for 12 years.

The money will support work to bring properties back into use through refurbishments, improvements to streets, and support to responsible landlords.

The work will focus on clusters of 25 houses or more in several different neighbourhoods in the borough.

Areas targeted are likely to include Duke Bar, Burnley-wood and Gannow.

Detailed plans on which areas will benefit, and the exact work to be carried out, will be drawn up by the council’s executive over the coming weeks.

Council Leader Julie Cooper said: “I would like to acknowledge the good work by my predecessor and his colleagues in putting Burnley forward for this funding.

“Officers put forward a strong case about housing needs in Burnley, and I am pleased that the Government has recognised our case for investment.

"I will now be making sure that this council gets on with the work of using these funds to good effect, and showing that we can deliver results with the funding made available to us.

“I am confident that this £3.5m, which we will need to match from Burnley’s own capital funds, will help address some of the housing issues we face in our neighbourhoods.”

Councillor Howard Baker, Burnley’s new executive member for housing, said: “One of the strengths of Burnley’s approach is partnership working.

“Our bid was put forward in a joint submission with Blackburn, Hyndburn and Pendle.

“We face similar problems to all these others, and we will continue to join with neighbouring councils when this helps bring money into our borough.”