AN international company will soon be moving to recently refurbished offices in Bradford city centre.

The company, which will be new to the city, is expected to be based in a new office development on Godwin Street, in part of the former TJ Hughes building.

The news was revealed at a meeting of Bradford Council’s Regeneration and Environment Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday night, when members were told that the identity of the company will be announced in the near future.

Work to create 3,000 square metres of Grade A office space in a large area of the former department store was recently completed.

The development was one of a number of updates committee members were given on the city centre, from new shops opening to updates on plans to build new office blocks.

City centre manager Jonny Noble and Nigel Rice, project delivery manager, spoke to members about efforts to get more businesses to open in the city centre, where almost a fifth of units are currently empty.

Members were told that the City Centre Growth Scheme, which provides businesses with rate rebates and grants and has been running for six years, has seen 232 businesses expand or open in the centre. Of those 48 were new businesses.

Mr Rice said almost 740 jobs had been created thanks to the scheme in that time, 516 of which were full-time, with 92 empty units brought back to use.

He said around 75 per cent of those businesses had survived more than three years, compared to 55 per cent of new businesses nationally.

One new business, Chinese restaurant Noodle Sing, opened last week, and a wine bar and indoor activity centre are due to open in the coming weeks

Mr Noble said a large number of bars had opened with help from the scheme, adding: "There has been a huge increase in places to go in recent years. About three or four years ago you were saying 'where can we go tonight.' That's changed now. If the offer is right the business will do well.

"But it is important these businesses actually open through the week, we can't just have businesses opening on Friday and Saturday night. We need to get it right."

Mr Rice said: "We don't necessarily support every proposal for a new bar. If we feel it is not bringing anything particularly new to the area, then they might not be supported by the scheme."

They said there was a focus on encouraging businesses to open empty units in the city's West End area, to complement the re-opening of the Odeon as a live music venue, Bradford Live, in late 2020.

One of the biggest planned developments in Bradford is One City Park - a proposed Grade A office building next to City Park, the site of the current temporary garden.

The Council is currently seeking a "preferred development partner" for the scheme, and a procurement process is currently underway. The committee was told that they had received seven expressions of interest from proposed developers, and this would be shortlisted to three. These three would then be invited to submit their proposals for the site, with the Council due to chose which business to partner with by Spring.

They also said the opening of a new sixth-form college next September, and the transfer of NHS staff to Scorex House near The Broadway next week, would bring hundreds more people to the city centre on a daily basis.

In other developments, professional services company PriceWaterhouseCoopers has been advertising for a number of new jobs in a proposed new “competency centre” in Bradford. A spokesperson for the company told the Telegraph & Argus they were not in a position to reveal any details of where the new centre would be based, and how many would be employed.