AN EXTRA 5,000 families in Bradford will be offered support in turning their lives around after the scheme proved successful in helping almost 1,400 "problem" families.

The Families First scheme, started in 2012, is a Government programme that targets families whose members are involved in anti-social behaviour, persistent offending, unemployment and regular absence from school.

In Bradford the project, which was due to end in March, targeted 1,760 families, and of these 1,404 have improved their lives.

The success has convinced the Government to make Bradford an "early adopter" of a new five year programme, which will run until March 2020.

As well as helping the families, the scheme was intended to reduce the amount spent on these families by different agencies, from social services to police and the NHS.

One adult coming off benefits can save almost £9,000 a year, and a single domestic violence incident can cost the police and criminal justice system £18,000.

Earlier this week the Council's children's services scrutiny committee heard a report on the progress of the project, and welcomed recent news that an extra 5,000 families would benefit.

The families chosen will include those with adults out of work, families affected by domestic violence and those involved in crime and anti-social behaviour.

However, whereas the previous programme allocated £4,000 per family, the latest Government allocation amounts to £1,800 per family.

The latest figures presented to the committee show that of the problem families dealt with 61 per cent were white British, of which 69 per cent have been classed as "turned around" and 24 per cent were South Asian, 77 per cent of which have been successfully turned around.

The ward with the highest number of families was Tong, with about 130, followed by Eccleshill (120), Bradford Moor (110), Keighley West (105) and Bowling and Barkerend (103).

The Council can only claim the full amount of government money once they have proved they have succeeded in improving the lives of each family.

At the committee meeting, chairman Councillor Malcolm Sykes said: "This looks and feels like a major success for Bradford.

"It is a brilliant scheme, I just can't say enough about it. It is something we have proved to be good at."

The meeting was told that about 70 adults have found work and were no longer dependant on benefits, and was told of a case study of a single mother who had started training since her family was identified. Her two teenage boys, often in trouble for school absence, had 100 per cent attendance in the past term.

The committee asked for a further update on the scheme in a year's time to see if it was still proving a success, despite the reduced funding.