A VALENTINE'S DAY arsonist who set fire to a wheelie bin outside his Deane home and endangered the lives of his neighbours has had his prison term increased.

Top judges have ruled that Ryan Hilton's two-year prison term was too soft, increasing it by 12 months.

Hilton, aged 31, of Grisdale Road, was jailed at Bolton Crown Court on June 1 after pleading guilty to reckless arson.

The solicitor general, Robert Buckland QC, viewed his punishment as "unduly lenient" and referred the case to London's Appeal Court on July 28.

On February 14 this year, at about 10pm, neighbours heard shouting and arguing in the street for about half an hour, the court heard.

Two hours later, Hilton was seen setting fire to a wheelie bin outside the front window of his house, fuelling it with pieces of wood and rubbish.

Flames reached the top of the ground floor window. The intense blaze damaged the window and 'significant' smoke damage inside the house.

Without the fire brigade's intervention, the fire could have spread to neighbouring homes where families were sleeping, said Lady Justice Macur.

The court heard Hilton was under intense strain at the time due to family problems and had relapsed into heroin abuse.

He had been taking drugs and drinking on the night of the fire, the judge said.

Tom Fitzpatrick, for Hilton, conceded the sentence was "lenient" but pleaded with the court not to increase it.

Lady Justice Macur said: "This was a bin directly next to the walls of the property, stoked by the offender and continuously so.

"That was despite him being challenged by a neighbour whose own property was put at risk by the incident."

It was not just a case of Hilton "making an empty gesture" and the solicitor general's arguments were "compelling", she added.

After the court's ruling, Mr Buckland said: "Ryan Hilton’s irresponsible actions endangered the lives of his neighbours.

"He deliberately fuelled the fire with pieces of wood and rubbish and the fire grew such that the flames reached up to the top of the ground floor window.

“The fire service stated that without their intervention the blaze would have spread to involve the whole building and the adjoining properties endangering of lives of his next door neighbours.

"I am pleased the Court of Appeal has acknowledged the seriousness of this offence and raised his sentence to three years.”