A councillor says Bradford needs to know why some city schools are not giving adequate publicity to students about the 16-19 Bursary Fund.
Councillor Geoff Reid (Lib Dem, Eccleshill) told the Council’s Children’s Services and Scrutiny Committee: “I know the Council cannot regulate or demand reports about the efforts of schools to improve the take-up of bursaries.
“But if the problem is some simply cannot be bothered then we need to say they are cheating some of the most hard-pressed young people in the district.”
The Department for Education has confirmed the Bursary Fund has been underspent nationally.
Coun Reid said students may fear the stigma of means-tested benefits “but this is an important part of ensuring we do not waste the talents of less well-off students.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here