A partially deaf pensioner has won a legal victory to force Brighton and Hove City Council to install hearing equipment in its town halls.

Colin Bennett, 65, sued the city council under the Disability Discrimination Act.

He took legal action following seven years of fruitless campaigning for fully functioning induction loops to allow those with hearing aids to hear the proceedings of meetings clearly.

Although the council had installed loops in Hove Town Hall and part of Brighton Town Hall, Mr Bennett said they were unreliable and insufficient.

None of the six committee rooms has working loops.

Following his fourth appearance at Brighton County Court, Mr Bennett received formal notification of a court order under which the council has agreed to commission an independent survey to find out what equipment is required.

The council has until the next court hearing on May 22 to present the results of its survey and until July 17 to install a loop or infrared system in the chamber of Brighton Town Hall if the survey deems it necessary.

No major meetings are expected to be held in the chamber before then following a ruling that fire safety features need updating.

Mr Bennett, a retired electrical engineer from Hove, said the council's decision to yield to his request was a sign it had "seen the writing on the wall". He said he would maintain the pressure until every meeting room contained working loops.

Had the council continued to resist his demands, he would have sought a full trial, which he estimated would have cost the taxpayer £20,000.

The cost of installing the induction loops is between £1,000 and £3,000 per room, depending on the size and scale of the system required.

Mr Bennett, whose campaign was backed by Labour councillor Roy Pennington and Tory Geoff Wells, said: "Common sense has broken out and not before time. We could have got to this stage months ago without any litigation but the council backed itself into a corner by denying the undeniable."

Mr Bennett hopes to recoup the £1,000 he spent on the legal action. However, he has always maintained he is not looking for compensation but for the council to be compelled to install, operate and maintain an induction loop or infrared system in all public chambers.

Council leader and Labour member Simon Burgess said: "We have been striving very hard to get this right but this is a subject where we are always going to be learning.

"I am very sorry for any member of the public who has not been able to follow what's going on and I'm pleased we have been able to reach agreement with Mr Bennett on a way forward."

He added that spending on bringing buildings into line with disability laws had increased from £500,000 last year to £650,000 in 2006/7.