A handyman service to stop vulnerable tenants having a DIY disaster has been launched.

The scheme has been set up by Ribble Valley Homes, the housing organisation that took over the ownership and management of all council housing stock in the borough last month.

The aim of the handyman project is to provide elderly and disabled residents with a lifeline for repairs and other minor jobs they would struggle to do on their own.

Handymen Andrew Joyce and Ray Parkinson will carry out minor repairs for elderly tenants and those with disabilities, fixing anything from a leaking tap to putting up a curtain rail.

Before the scheme was launched, vulnerable tenants would have to rely on friends, relatives or pay tradesmen.

But the service, which covers more than 1,000 homes across the Ribble Valley including Read, Sabden and Simonstone, is completely free of charge to residents.

It is hoped the handymen will also be a reassuring presence to vulnerable tenants who could fall prey to door-to-door workmen who do a botched job.

Handyman Andrew, 54, said: "The residents feel more independent because they can have someone to call upon rather than have to wait for other people to do jobs.

"I do all kinds of jobs. I fit security locks, put pictures up, help them move furniture, and have installed electric heaters. One woman even asked to drill some holes in a pan so the steam could get out - which I didn't mind doing."

Ribble Valley Homes resident Lou Howarth, 81, said: "I think it's a good idea because I can't get up to fix my curtains.

"Before the service started we had to wait for someone to come to fix something."

And Joanne Davis, who has been a Ribble Valley Homes warden for 18 months, said the service had made a real difference to a section of residents.

She said: "People won't really care too much if the tiles on the roof need fixing, but they do care about having blinds in their window.

"They don't see the point of bigger jobs like getting a new boiler put in, but if someone can come in and stop the door from catching, that's great."