BERNESLAI Homes has been named as one of the top landlords in the country.

In a national poll conducted by 24 Housing magazine, a panel of housing industry judges compiled a list of the UK's top fifty social housing landlords.

The magazine's readers then voted on the final positions of the top ten, with the Barnsley company finishing in fourth.

Paul Tennant, president of the Chartered Institute of Housing and a judge in the competition, said: "What can be seen is a desire and passion to meet the needs and aspirations of a wide range of customers from all organisations irrespective of scale."

Berneslai Homes won plaudits from the judges for its efficient, resident-focused set up, with a range of impressive community projects.

"It’s a mix of the very solid and the very exciting," the judges said.

Berneslai Homes manages nearly 19,000 properties for Barnsley Council and under chief executive Helen Jaggar has won a reputation for excellent services, achieving three stars under the old Audit Commission regime and was voted amongst the top 100 not-for-profit companies to work for by the Sunday Times.

Tenant satisfaction stands at 90 per cent and Berneslai Homes has also started building new homes.

"This is a great achievement for Berneslai Homes and I'd like to say thank you to everyone who voted for us," said Helen Jaggar.

"Our ethos is excellent value for money services with tenants at the heart of what we do and we're very proud that this approach has been acknowledged at a national level."