There are winners and losers following Bradford Council's allocation of grants to voluntary organisations.

Decisions reached by the Council last November spelt disaster for some groups which now face closure or, at the very least, a struggle to survive.

Others, however, gained more than they expected from the allocation and, as a result, are thriving.

But Bradford Law Centre is expected to put a complaint into the local government Ombudsman of the association, which feels the new points system was unfair.

More than a hundred organisations from across the district received awards which meant many of them could carry on.

Community Development committee chairman councillor Ralph Berry said the Council is sorry that some groups face closure but will meet to help them seek alternative funding.

He said it had been necessary to give winding-down advice to groups in order to help them.

Many of the groups have campaigned unsuccessfully to get a U-turn from the Council and several - including the Bangladeshi People's Association are going to the Ombudsman, saying their applications were dealt with unfairly.

But the Council has pointed out that it has still allocated £6 million pounds - far more than many other local authorities - to keep many groups open.

He said he was sad one group in particular, the West Indian Parents Association, had lost out.

Deb Collett from the District's Voluntary Sector Forum said it was tragic that well-established groups will be hit.

She said: "We will support and encourage any effort they make to stay open and would urge Bradford Council to find the extra funds."

One of the groups which faces closure is the Girlington Centre in Girlington, Bradford, which is home to a number of groups including a youth club.

Chairman of the management committee of the Girlington Centre, the Reverend Brian Tucker stressed the closure was not solely because they had been unable to get all the funding they had asked for from the Council

"We got £14,500 - about two third of the amount we needed."

He said the centre had also lost funds from other sources.

The centre's facilities include a youth club and courses which are heavily attended.

Another group in difficulty is the West Indian Parents Association. The group's administrator, Max Prosper, said although they were a vital resource they had scored no points in the new system used by the Council to award grants.

He said: "It had nothing to do with the relevance of services."

Mr Prosper said they needed £114,000 to stay afloat and had been unable to raise it elsewhere.

Also among the losers are disabled Paul Honey and Kevin Simpson are among dozens of paid workers in the various organisations whose jobs will be axed.

Kevin, of Tyersal, who works with Paul on the environment team at Holme Christian Care Centre said: "I am really happy here. I am really worried that it will be difficult to find another job."

The pair are in the team responsible for 34 gardens belonging to disabled pensioners on the Holme Wood estate. They will lose their jobs on March 31 unless new funding can be found.

And advice worker Goyas Kahn will lose his job with the Bangladeshi People's Association and says his service is vitally needed. He said the association hoped to keep some services going with volunteers in the rest of the centre.

Mohammed Amran, a management committee member at the Grosvenor Centre said it is the main centre for the community.

Keighley Women's Centre offers a wide range of training and counselling services for local women.

The centre used to receive £11,702 in Council grants but has now had its funding withdrawn.

The group has earned a reprieve until September with cash from the Single Regeneration Budget. But its future will then be in the balance.

Centre worker Jean O'Keeffe said: "They didn't tell you how the point system worked. We went to countless workshops about how to apply but still no-one knew how it worked."

"We couldn't even get a phone call from the council. They did offer help but only to help wind up the organisation and help with redundancies."

Thorpe Edge Playgroup is another voluntary service to lose its grant. Thorpe Edge community development worker, John Sheen, said: "It's a very serious situation, At this point in time it looks like the group may have to close."

Officials at Baildon Community Link, which has been providing advice and counselling services in the village for more than a decade, have vowed to continue despite losing out on funding worth £48,000.

Among the winners was Keighley Motor Project, a group which helps to steer youngsters away from crime, was a winner when it received a grant last November to help it stay afloat.

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