Binmen have agreed not to strike in a deal drawn up to end a decade of industrial unrest.

It will save Brighton and Hove from a summer of walk-outs, which could have left rubbish piling up in the streets.

Refuse staff have agreed to deliver a modernised service in which wheelie bin and recycling schemes will be introduced throughout the city.

Many of the new schemes could be up and running by August.

Union leaders reached the landmark agreement with managers when three weeks of intense talks.

Managers of the city council's in-house refuse service Cityclean and senior GMB officials both signed a 24-page agreement document.

They also reached an agreement that 11 binmen suspended for taking unofficial industrial action in the form of a go-slow would return to work this week.

Refuse workers had voted overwhelmingly for industrial action which could have included a strike, the second in less than a year.

Alistair McLean, a senior representative from the GMB's headquarters, stepped in to help with the negotiations in support of his regional representatives, Charles Harrity and Mark Turner.

The trio signed the agreement with Brighton and Hove City Council leader Ken Bodfish, chief executive David Panter and Cityclean head Gillian Marston.

Both sides said the agreement should end the problems between staff and management which had been inherited by the council when it took over from private contractor Sita. The council sacked Sita.

They will also set up a Cityclean consultative group and a refuse round monitoring team.

For the first time, Cityclean managers and GMB representatives stood shoulder to shoulder to speak to the workforce at the Hollingdean depot, informing them of the deal.

They explained how procedures had been established to improve relations between managers and staff.

Mr Harrity said afterwards: "I think the most important part of what this agreement has achieved is that it has tried to normalise industrial relations.

"It will make people realise they need to be able to work together. They need to be honest."

The conciliation service Acas will work with stewards at the depot on advisory workshops covering how to work with managers to create good relations.

Mr Harrity said: "The framework for the consultative groups, with Acas's input, will hopefully start to put a sense of reality into industrial relations.

"There's no reason why a relationship should not start to be built between the workforce and management. I'm a bit more optimistic than I was seven weeks ago."

Mr McLean said: "It's very obvious to me that the council is quite a good employer in terms of what we are looking to achieve.

"We have to make a change and the public deserve it. We are here to deliver and I'm optimistic."

Jenny Rowlands, the council's environment director, said: "I heard the GMB clearly saying the council is not a bad employer.

"That sort of message is very important."

Ms Marston said: "We now have a more robust industrial relations framework which will involve the workforce and GMB.

"We've got a wheelie bin roll-out agreement and recycling so we have a more positive message that we are going to work together productively to modernise this service.

"We have to work hard to change the culture of the depot on both sides, management and the GMB.

"We are committed to change and have done a lot of hard work to reverse years and years of unrest and once we have that in place, residents can expect less disruption in services, whoever caused it."