A LARGE crowd gathered at an inner-city community centre to celebrate its grand opening.

The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Councillor Geoff Reid, performed the ceremony yesterday at the Millside Centre, in Grattan Road, Bradford.

Following the ceremony, hundreds of people were invited into the centre, run by charity Reach Beyond, to get a glimpse inside.

A number of activities took place on the day, including arts and crafts, , balloon animal artists, face painting and a smoothie bike.

The Lord Mayor praised the refurbishment work done at the centre, which he said was rubble when he visited last year.

He said: “It was all stripped back, and we knew what they wanted to do by it was difficult to envisage what was going to happen.

“This is a very traditional part of the city where lots of people live, so this centre will be critical to the area.

“It is a huge positive to see this charity taking this area as seriously as they are, and they have a very ambitious programme for the centre.”

The leader of Bradford Council, Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, said: “They have made great use of the space, there is a great kitchen for cooking lessons and it is a really vibrant and accessible place for the community.

“When I visited a few months ago it was a building site, the building was a shell and I had to wear a hard hat, so it is great to see what they have done and to see the community here enjoying it.”

Some of the services provided by the centre will include cooking lessons, help for addicts, legal and housing advice, and English lessons for refugees and asylum speakers.

Colin Lowther, chief executive of Reach Beyond, said he was hugely proud to open the centre which has cost almost £750,000.

He said: “We didn’t just want a community centre, we wanted a focus.

“We have been plonked right in the middle of this community and will be able to provide what it needs.

“We’re also looking at what the community can offer by trying to find the assets the community has and helping to develop them.”

The work at the centre will involved a number of different partners, including Bradford Council’s children’s services, the British Red Cross, Bradford Family Support Network, and the Hidden Homeless.

For full details on services provided by the centre, visit millsidecentre.org.