Primary school children who have been researching one of Bradford’s most iconic buildings have written to Bradford Council to help them shape its future.

Pupils at Lady Royd Primary School in Girlington hope that Bradford Council takes their views into account when deciding what should be done with the Odeon building.

Class 3P’s latest topic is called The Generation Game and involves them looking at things through the eyes of different generations.

Teachers felt that in Bradford a good thing to focus on was the Odeon – derelict for 14 years but once one of the focal points of the city centre.

In a few weeks’ time the building’s future may be a bit more clear. Bradford Council bought the Odeon for £1 last year, and have since asked any groups interested in taking it over to come forward with ideas on how the building could be used.

Three groups have so far made proposals. Bradford Live would see the building turned into one of Yorkshire’s largest concert venues. The old cinemas and bingo hall would be stripped out, auditorium restored and a venue created with a capacity of 4,000 with stalls or 3,500 fully seated.

Bradford One propose a 2,000-capacity music venue as well as a five-storey new-build on an empty space behind the Odeon, which would become office space for creative industries.

And a consortium of businesses have proposed turning the building into a leisure centre, including a swimming pool, diving pool and shops.

The three different proposals were discussed by pupils at Lady Royd Primary School over the past term and they were asked what Bradford already had and what it needed the most.

After talking with their parents, grandparents and friends, they collected all the opinions, drew up charts and decided the Bradford One idea was the one they would be supporting. Now the class has drawn up a letter and sent it to the Council – who will be discussing the three different options next month.

To make the project appeal to people of all ages the youngsters suggested that it also include quiet rooms for the elderly and a roof garden that could be used for events.

Class teacher Seba Thomson said it was an ideal project for the children, as they got to mix history with current affairs and maths when coming up with the charts and graphs to find out the most popular proposal.

Miss Thomson added: “We looked at the history of the building and the different schemes people had put forward to preserve it.

“Children designed a questionnaire and took it home to their parents and grandparents. Once they got the results they put together tables and bar charts with the results. We also looked at how the Odeon could suit all generations. It has been a really interesting project.”

She said the children hoped their voices would be listened to when Bradford Council comes to make any decision. And they got to learn at a young age about compromise, and how people have to look at what different people want before they make such big decisions.

Vinali Patel, seven, said: “We’ve drawn some pictures of what we could have in it and what rooms should be in there.”

Mohammed Seif Ilyas, also seven, said: “We’ve all written our own letters and the best three got to go to Bradford Council. I wanted it to be a swimming pool with football pitches.”

And seven-year-old Imaan Zahra said: “We came up with ideas and thought it would be good to have lots of different stuff inside. All ages should enjoy it.”

The class letter that has been sent to Bradford Council says: “The most popular idea was the Bradford One proposal. We think it is a good idea because many people commented on the need for leisure activities for all ages. People feel Bradford needs to have a reason for visitors to come and if the Bradford One proposal goes ahead they will spend money in other shops, bars and restaurants too.”