Adam came to the UK last year from his native Poland.

The 25-year-old found work in Bradford, but, after losing his job, he found that the language barrier, coupled with the recession and competition for jobs, prevented him from finding employment.

With a young family to feed and care for, Adam (not his real name) became depressed and frustrated, but with the help of the Holme Christian Community Employment programme, supported by Bradford Council and based on Holme Wood Estate, he took a course to learn English and has finally found employment.

Adam is one of the programme’s success stories after finding his way back into work, but many more in similar situations are not so fortunate.

With authorities having to reduce their costs in the recent budget cuts, some schemes encouraging people into employment have suffered.

For people who are making the effort and want to get back into work, the cuts couldn’t have come at a worse time.

Recent figures from the Office for National Statistics suggest there are now 16,178 people claiming Jobseekers allowance in the Bradford district.

According to the figures, there are 11,388 men and 4,790 women districtwide claiming the allowance, with 404 fewer men and 580 more women claiming than in 2010.

Bradford East has the most number of allowance claimants, with a 6.2 per cent of constituents without a job. Bradford South has 5.4; Bradford West 5.2; Keighley 3.8 and Shipley 3.5.

Rob Daly, marketing and events co-ordinator at Forster Community College in Bradford says: “A lot of our students are on Jobseekers allowance and are struggling to get work at the moment.”

The college has around 100 students on the New Deal programme which is mandated by the Job Centre. New Deal aims to get people a job if they are out of work. It also gives people the opportunity to train, learn and do work experience, helping them gain confidence and acquire new skills to equip them for employment.

“It seems there aren’t the jobs out there – and if they are out there, they are not in the locality for a lot of our client group,” says Rob.

Harold Robinson, president of Bradford Chamber of Commerce, says: “Recruitment is very low now, anyway. The economic recovery is still very fragile, so employers might also want only part-time or temporary staff for specific contracts.

If and when new staff are sought, businesses need applicants with the right blend of skills and experience, as well as attitude and commitment, so that needs to be demonstrated clearly in CVs, application forms and interviews.

“To those people trying to get back into the job market, we would advise them to try and make sure they have the right mix of education and qualifications with the appropriate approach and presentation. Do your homework on the company – find out what they are about and stand out from the crowd, in a positive way.”

David Wilford, co-chairman of Bradford’s regeneration and prosperity forum and chief executive of the Holme Christian Community, estimates that the city will need to create around 14,000 jobs in the next four years.

“We have the Employment Skills Plan which is getting people up to higher-level skills.”

David says companies tend to seek ‘job-ready’ people. Those recently made redundant fit that criteria.

Bradford’s problems are also compounded by a massive training need. “There are a lot of deprived communities,” says David. “We have to put a lot of effort into skilling people and the Future Jobs Fund was great. Bradford has had more than 50 per cent success rate in people moving on into employment of some nature – that is phenomenal.”

Holme Christian Community took more than 30 19 to 25-year-olds through the scheme. “And we have got nine employed with other organisations,” says David.

He says another reason for Bradford’s unemployment problem is the loss of manufacturing in the city.

Bradford was once an international hub of textile and engineering expertise. “We need some decent employment in Bradford – decent wages and understanding employers, because it is not just about getting a job, it’s keeping people in employment.”

David acknowledges that the double dip recession has had a significant impact on unemployment too but adds: “We need to get Bradford moving forward.”