A long-standing Bradford teacher has criticised the Government for ending a programme which helps young, disadvantaged teenagers go to university.

Richard Wilkinson, director of Aimhigher Bradford, claims the decision is “short-sighted” as he prepares to retire when funding for the project ends this summer.

Almost 30,000 local children from 16 secondary schools and academies, 25 primary schools and three further education colleges have benefited from Aimhigher Bradford since it started in 2004.

The programme, which nationally costs £78m a year, raises the awareness and aspirations of young people through events such as summer schools and university taster days.

Yet politicians will scrap it at the end of the academic year to press ahead with a new framework.

Former Tong High School assistant head teacher Mr Wilkinson said: “I’m deeply disappointed that the city will lose a golden chance to ‘big up’ kids, widen horizons, beat the Bradford disease of apologising for being Bradfordians and stand tall.

“It loses hundreds of potential young ‘Bradvocates’ joining the professions and helping the economic regeneration of our city. It is so short-sighted. The results have been astounding.

“I loved watching as the young people grow in confidence and the unique moments like Shabana Kosar becoming the first British Asian woman in the UK to wear a fire service uniform. Or Aleh Becker, a refugee from Belarus, being admitted to Sheffield University to read medicine.

“More recently Umar Zahoor from Tong High took part in a life-changing trip to Auschwitz as part of a BBC documentary to explore how today’s generation feel about the Holocaust.”

Explaining the Government’s decision, a spokesman for the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, said: “Aimhigher has assisted universities and schools to learn a lot about what works in raising the aspirations of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, but we now need to use this knowledge to make much faster progress on social mobility.

“Universities are being asked to work much harder to recruit students from disadvantaged backgrounds in the future. In order to charge more for tuition, universities will need to set themselves stretching benchmarks on access, achieving a more representative student body and improving student retention.”

The spokesman said the introduction of the £2.5bn pupil premium and the £150m National Scholarship programme would instead allow for a “whole of education approach” and support pupils to turn school-based achievement into success at university.

e-mail: ben.barnett @telegraphandargus.co.uk