A scheme to combat racial harassment is set to expand across Bradford after more than a hundred incidents were reported on one estate alone.

The Bradford Alliance Against Racial Harassment (BAARH) began a pilot project on the Canterbury estate, Little Horton, 15 months ago.

The aim was to encourage people to report all incidents of racial abuse - from name-calling in the street to vandalism and violence. And more than 100 victims have come forward for help in that time - convincing project leaders of the need to extend the scheme across Bradford.

Their cases include:

*Elderly Asian women being accosted in the street and told: 'Go Home, Paki'. Some are so traumatised they become housebound rather than risk a trip to the shops

*Families who have had excrement pushed through their letterbox and graffiti daubed on their house

lA man beaten over the head with a baseball bat.

BAARH is now beginning work in the Barkerend area of Bradford and hopes its work will cover the whole of the city in two years' time.

Saleem Sharif, project co-ordinator based at the Bradford Racial Equality Council, explained: "We are not here just to assist Asian and black people, we are here to help anyone who feels they have been a victim of racist abuse.

"On the Canterbury estate there are a number of reporting centres - neutral places were there are people trained specially to help. Victims do not always want to go to the police.

"We work together with the police, Victim Support, the council's housing department and probation to find remedies and support the individuals.

"The message we are sending out to people is 'Don't accept it'. You can go and report incidents - racial harassment is a crime."

Nigel Delaney, of the charity Impact which works on the Canterbury Estate, said:

"Some of our activities, like our football team, Canterbury United, have been good in that they have drawn together white, Asian and Afro-Caribbean youngsters.

"Over the past year we have seen a dip in incidents of racial harassment. It doesn't mean it's totally gone away, but we are not having the same problems we were having a year ago. There's an air of optimism on the estate."

*Children at two local schools, Horton Park First School and the Grange Upper School, are taking part in a competition to design a new poster for BAARH which will be launched across the city in July.

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