Over £33m has been spent by Southampton City Council on making its residential buildings across Southampton compliant with the latest fire-safety regulations.

As part of regular inspections, the council found that many of their homes’ fire doors were no longer up to standard with new fire-safety laws.

The council then used part of the multi-million-pound budget to install 10,000 new front doors with fire-safe door sets, protecting 24,000 tenants across the city.

Local contractor CLC continues to carry out the fire door upgrade programme which is set to finish later in the year.

Some 40 new jobs were created for locals by using a contractor already based in Southampton, with CLC working closely with Hampshire fire services to get buildings up to scratch.

READ MORE: Plans to sell 32 council assets present opportunity to 'reshape' portfolio

CLC also teamed up with door suppliers to design bespoke solutions for the council’s sheltered accommodations where residents could have mobility issues.

This included using door closers that activate in the event of a fire and push-button-activated doors for wheelchair users.

The £33m budget has been spent elsewhere on additional fire safety methods, such as cable clipping, sprinkler installation, and fire alarm replacement.

CLC is also installing extra signage and emergency lighting, plus putting in compartmentation in their high-rise flats.

Compartmentation is the process of dividing bigger buildings into smaller walled sections to limit damage and add extra protection.

READ MORE: Demolition of former department store to make way for 17-storey tower to start soon

Further sprinkler improvements will be completed in 2027 whereas the work involving fire compartments within high-rise flats is estimated to finish in 2025.

The council say that ‘great care’ was taken to keep residents fully informed before and during the works to minimise disruption.

Councillor Andy Frampton, cabinet member for housing at Southampton City Council, said: “I’m pleased that we have reached this milestone in fitting 10,000 new front doors to tenants’ homes.

“This is the result of a successful partnership between Southampton City Council and CLC.

“The safety and wellbeing of our tenants is important to us, and we will continue to make improvements across our social housing as there is more work to do in areas such as repairs and voided properties.”