BRADFORD Council is preparing a number of bids for funding that could see each constituency awarded up to £20 million.

But the Council’s leader has criticised the way the “Levelling Up” fund will be handed out by Government, describing it as a “beauty contest” that will see Bradford competing against richer, Souther constituencies.

Announced by the Government earlier this year, the Levelling Up fund is a pot of £4.8 billion that will be handed out to areas across the UK.

Constituencies will draw up schemes and submit them to Government, although there is no guarantee that the bids will be successful.

The deadline for the first round of bids is June 18.

The cash is aimed at funding projects such as smaller scale transport schemes, high street regeneration, and boosting cultural assets.

Although the fund is open to each constituency in the UK, some areas, such as ex industrial areas and more deprived constituencies, have been deemed higher priority. Bradford is one such high priority area.

Bradford Council react to towns being given over £50 million

A report to Bradford Council’s Executive last week said the Government “will prioritise bids that can demonstrate local investment and begin delivery on the ground in the 2021-22 financial year. All funding provided will need to be spent by 31 March 2024.”

There would be another two rounds of funding in the future.

Neighbouring Leeds Council has made details of some of its bids public - they include improvements to the outer ring road between Horsforth and Pudsey and a new “Well Being Centre” on the site of existing Fearnville Leisure Centre.

However, Bradford Council has been more tight lipped about its bids, and have not yet announced any details.

The report said: “As these funds are highly competitive, national processes, we have not provided detail of our proposals at this stage. However, we plan to provide more detail on this at a future point.”

At the Executive meeting, Councillor Rebecca Poulsen, leader of the Conservative opposition, pointed out that with just days to go before the bid deadline, she and other Councillors had not been consulted or given details on what exactly Bradford was bidding for.

Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe said MPs for each constituency were playing a big role in the fund.

She also criticised how the fund was being delivered - claiming it should be targeted at areas of the North most in need of support,rather than handed out to Councils that delivered the most impressive bids.

She said: “We’re prefer to be working in partnership with the Government to deliver what is best for the region rather than have some kind of beauty contest where we are competing against other authorities.”

After being told every Council in the UK would be able to make bids, even wealthier Southern Councils, she said: “It makes a mockery of the term levelling up. It should be levelling up areas of the North most in need of investment - that’s what the fund should be responding to.”

She added: “The hurdles are high, but we’ll jump them to get the best deal for the Bradford District.”

The next round of bids is expected in Spring 2022, although the Council has been warned that bids that are unsuccessful in the first round are unlikely to be successful in the second.