Bradford Council's very first end-of-year report should leave it with a rightful sense of achievement - but there's certainly no room to rest on its laurels.

While all those who contributed to the Audit Commission's assessment of Bradford Council as a "good" council, from chief executive Ian Stewart and leader Margaret Eaton down, should be proud of the authority's rating in this first-ever publication of council league tables, they should also be using it as a springboard to do even better work in the district.

It is heartening to see Bradford get full marks for its housing and benefit services, but the vital services of education, social care and libraries were awarded only two out of a possible four marks, and this gives the authority a platform to work from to strive for better results next time.

Of course, in this world of lies, damn lies and statistics, such number-crunching exercises often have to be taken comparatively to have any real meaning.

Thus, Bradford's equal rating alongside other authorities such as Sheffield, Manchester, Newcastle and especially Leeds, to which Bradford has long been considered something of a poor relation, is excellent and uplifting news.

Of particular note in the report is the mention of how Bradford coped with the aftermath of last year's riots. The Audit Commission recognised that the district had learned much from the disturbances, and resulted in closer work between agencies and more sensitive community leadership.

To get such a positive report just a little more than a year after the riots which devastated the community is testament to the work done in the city in that time, and should encourage us to look forward with even more confidence.