A district of Bradford branded one of the UK's most deprived areas has achieved a turnabout to become one of the safest and happiest places in the city.
People in the Trident area, centred on West Bowling, Marshfields, Little Horton and the bottom of Manchester Road, say crime is down and more of them are in paid work.
Fewer feel unsafe walking the streets after dark and more than three quarters are fairly happy with the state of their homes.
A new survey of 400 residents reveals 72 per cent feel that the creation of Bradford Trident has benefited the area.
The arbitrary zone was set up to embrace 4,200 homes in what was one of the UK's most disadvantaged areas. Little Horton, included in Trident, was designated the UK's second most deprived area.
Chairman of Bradford Trident, Ian Greenwood, says he is delighted by the new findings.
The councillor for Little Horton was born in West Bowling and lived in the district for the first 30 years of his life.
"People are coming up to me in the streets and saying how much better things are," he said.
"The improvement to the area is one of the things I am proudest about since I entered politics."
Coun Greenwood, who visits the area almost daily, said he knew the tables had turned early last year when crime dropped below the city's average and schools achieved above average results.
Coun Greenwood said clean-up campaigns, better housing and the creation of new parks had all contributed to the feel-good factor.
The Ipsos Mori poll compares residents' views on a range of subjects in 2002 with how they feel nowadays.
Only 26 per cent now feel unsafe walking the area at night compared with 36 per cent four years ago. Just eight per cent say house breaking is a problem, against almost a quarter (23 per cent) in 2006.
A tiny four per cent saw abandoned or burned out cars as a serious problem, compared with a fifth four years ago.
People over 16 in paid work has risen from 30 per cent to 41 per cent and those who smoke cigarettes have reduced from 30 per cent to 25 per cent.
Perhaps the most remarkable finding of the survey is that a fifth of those interviewed say they are happy "all the time".
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