Job-creation and training schemes which help hundreds of Bradford people have been given a cash boost from the Government.

Bradford & District Training & Enterprise Council has won £185,013 from the Government to help people with disabilities, from ethnic minorities and to support education schemes.

The TEC has won a share of £2.38 million given to TECs in the Yorkshire and Humberside region out of a £19.5 million national pot.

Bradford TEC will plough the money into various schemes including YouthBuild which was set up to help 16 to 24-year-olds learn construction industry skills under the Modern Apprentices scheme.

A team of young people is working on homes in the Manningham area of Bradford and learning the skills as they go along.

A recruitment, guidance and counselling service for people over 40 years called People of Previous Experience will also be given a slice of the cash. The service includes help on interview techniques, presentation and CV writing to get people back to work.

The Cellar Project, which helps people with a range of disabilities and mental health problems to develop self-confidence and communication skills to give them a better chance of a job, will also benefit from the new money.

The Bradford Successmaker Learning Project, a computer-based learning system which helps children improve literacy and numeracy skills, will be given extra resources from the Government funding.

Mike Lowe, the TEC's training and education director, said: "This is a sample of the range of activities we are supporting. The breath and depth of this provision for the district is thanks to the great effort of the TEC and its partners."

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