After resigning as council leader Steve Reed said Lambeth will retain a ‘special place’ in his heart forever.

Mr Reed was elected MP for Croydon North on Thursday, November 29, and resigned today as Lambeth council leader and councillor.

Leader elect Councillor Lib Peck now takes up the reins until formal voting in at the next full council meeting.

A byelection will also take place in Brixton Hill ward.

Mr Reed offered ‘sincere thanks’ to people across the borough for their support, advice and encouragement since he became leader more than six years ago.

He said: "Lambeth will always hold a special place in my heart, and I wish everyone who lives in this wonderful borough the greatest success and happiness in the years to come."

Mr Reed said he felt deeply honoured to be elected to represent Croydon North and believed he was leaving Lambeth much better off than when he took charge.

He said: "I believe Lambeth is in a far better place today than when I was first elected leader in May 2006.

"Of course there’s still much more to do, but I am confident that under our new leader, Coun Lib Peck, Lambeth Council will continue to improve and to tackle successfully the issues that matter most to local people."

Mr Reed highlighted having frozen council tax for four years with a further freeze of at least two years to come and Lambeth’s children’s services being rated the best in the country.

He said they have opened new schools to meet the growing need for places and opened a new library and leisure centre with two more leisure centres being built.

He said: "Local streets are cleaner than they used to be, many more worn-out roads and pavements have been replaced, we’ve invested in better youth services to steer vulnerable young people away from crime, and we’ve strengthened our relationship with the police to cut crime overall."

He said the after too many years of under-performance the housing service is also finally improving and money had been found to upgrade 15,000 substandard homes.

He said: "Our developing plans to hand more power and control to local people as a cooperative council will ensure that services continue to become more effective and responsive in future."