Hopes of starting vital activities to help families on one of the district's most deprived estates have been dashed because of a hold-up in a grant.

Fagley Community Associa-tion wanted to open school-holiday projects, followed by a range of activities from September, including an after-school club.

Now members say they have been unable to start preparations because the £8,000 grant from the Newlands Partnership has not arrived.

The partnership is administering the massive regeneration of five deprived estates including Fagley after the area received a £17million award from the Government's Single Regenera-tion Budget.

The activities will include training sessions for unemployed people, mother-and-toddler groups and after-school sessions for children, including homework projects.

Today Helen Richardson, who will run the mother-and-toddler group, said she was bitterly disappointed about the delay.

She said the grant is needed for work on the empty Fagley Social Club where the schemes would take place.

Helen said external doors need to be improved - there has already been a break-in while officials waited to start work.

She said: "Fagley really needs the schemes and we had hoped to start them in the summer holidays. Now we are worried about whether we will be able to get things started in September, when the schools go back."

But Jim Smith, the partnership's Chief Executive, said: "The grant went to the partnership on July 11. The paperwork has been done. The lease of the building has not been finalised, but we are trying to achieve that as quickly as we can."