Register to vote
 On Thursday 5 May residents in Bradford District will go to the polls to have their say on who represents them at a local level.
Local government elections select councillors, who are responsible for making decisions on running services in your local area. These include education, transport, planning, parks, leisure, street cleansing, refuse collection, libraries and museums and street wardens.
In order to vote in this important election, residents must be on the electoral register. The deadline to make sure you’re registered is under a month away and Bradford Council is urging residents who have not registered at their current address to make sure they are registered in time.
The deadline to register to vote is Thursday 14 April. Anyone can apply online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote It takes just five minutes.
Ramadan Mubarak!
 Ramadan Mubarak to all our colleagues, residents and friends who are taking part in this month of fasting. Signalled by the first siting of the crescent moon, this year’s Ramadan will start for some today, and others from tomorrow and will last until the 1/2 May.
Bradford Sports Awards Winners Revealed
 The 6th Bradford Sports Awards winners were announced last week at a ceremony held at the Bradford Hotel.
The awards celebrate the sporting performances of athletes of all ages, coaches, administrators and volunteers from across the Bradford District during 2021.
18 winner's and 35 highly commended awards were presented by the event partners Bradford Council and Bradford 2025 and sponsors Living Well, JU:MP and Turner & Townsend.
Highlights of the awards were Roy Mason who picked up the Special Recognition Award for his work as coach at Steeton AFC, where he has managed the club for over 500 matches, with the Sporting Highlight being Bradford Bulls' move back to Odsal.
Top Sportsman was footballer Daniel Francis who plies his trade in Germany, with Taekwondo star Gina Bene-Hamill the Sportswoman winner.
Community Champions, for keeping the community active during the pandemic, were cyclist Satwant Singh and youngsters Aaleyah Tahir and Jahzara Mcintosh
The full list of winners and highly commended award winners are listed here.
Three more events round up Bradford Council’s Spring Back 2022 campaign
 Our successful Spring Back 2022 campaign culminated in three more spectacular events last weekend.
The latest events, all part of the council’s campaign to encourage people to rediscover their local high streets, included Keighley’s K-Town Shopper event, the Ilkley Family Takeover Day and the Spring into Wibsey fair.
Our Spring Back 2022 events have been created in partnership with local artists, event organisers and businesses to encourage people to rediscover the district’s town and neighbourhood high streets. Events held on previous weekends as part of the campaign included two hugely successful beer festivals, (one in Shipley and one in Bingley) as well as a fabulously magical day of witches and wizards in Haworth.
Wibsey Library temporary closure update
Wibsey Library, which closed last month for urgent repairs to the floor, is likely to remain closed until June.
It had originally been hoped the library would be back open this week but difficulties in getting hold of contractors at short notice mean it is not now expected to be ready to reopen for around two months.
Customers are still able to contact staff on the Wibsey Library phone number. Wyke is the nearest alternative library.
Rate relief deadline extended to give Bradford businesses last chance to apply
We are urging local companies to take advantage of a business rate relief scheme aimed at helping them after the impact of COVID-19 last year.
The new closing date will be midnight of Easter Monday, 18 April 2022.
The £10.4m COVID-19 Additional Relief Fund (CARF) is a local scheme to help small businesses who did not get any other business support during Covid and there are still many qualifying businesses who are still to apply.
Even if you have already paid your 2021/22 business rates, you could be in line for credit against future business rate payments from this Government-backed fund.
To find out if your business is eligible, visit our website and complete a quick and simple application form.
New Food Innovation and Production Centre marks a new era for school meals in Bradford
Our new energy-efficient, lower carbon school meals production centre is up and running.
The Food Innovation and Production Centre (FIPC), based at Mitre Court, off Cutler Heights Lane, is a huge leap from 1907, when Bradford was the first ever place in the country to provide council-funded school meals at Green Lane Primary School. The school kitchen at the time used the same boiler that heated the school’s swimming pool.
The new 21st century FIPC was created through re-purposing an existing council building. The facility is now energy efficient and the building footprint is a quarter of the size of the previous, much larger, building in Laisterdyke. This also means that it will be cheaper to heat, maintain and clean, but it was essential when designing it to maximise every bit of the space available.
All aspects of the food’s journey, from preparation to plate have been carefully considered in a comprehensive re-engineering of the whole process to address the environmental impact of the catering operations.
Forecast year-end for 2021-22
We are forecast to overspend our revenue budget by £3.2m by March 31 2022. The projected overspend has reduced by £2.3m from the £5.5m overspend forecast in the Quarter 2 Finance Position Statement and is in line with the Quarter 3 forecast.
The report will go before our Executive on Tuesday, 5 April. The report sets out the pressures faced by the council’s budget, including rising demands for services whilst ensuring continued support for the district’s citizens and businesses post-pandemic. COVID-19 still remains a challenge for the district, as it is for communities and local authorities across the country, as its impact is still being felt as the council looks to invest in a strong recovery together with partner organisations in the district.
The Executive will be asked to note the issues and actions and also to approve capital expenditure schemes.
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