Two extra secondary schools are urgently needed to cope with the soaring number of pupils entering Bradford’s overstretched education system, a Labour councillor has warned.

Councillor Ralph Berry, Bradford Council’s portfolio holder for children’s and young people’s services, has warned that within two years city schools will not be able cope with any new admissions.

To tackle the problem, he plans to lodge a multi-million pound bid for government cash for two new schools within the next few weeks.

If the bid is successful, the new schools could be open as soon as 2014.

Councillor Berry blamed rising birth rates, immigration from Eastern Europe and the recession for the extra 1,800 secondary school places needed for students last year.

To cope with that overload, schools have voluntarily agreed to admit more than their published admission figures for this month.

The new schools would each have 1,000 capacity and could be built in or around the postcodes BD3 to BD6 and BD9.

Four potential sites have been identified, but Councillor Berry would not be drawn on exact locations.

“People have to understand that this is a really urgent issue and if we can’t find somewhere we will not have places for our children,” he warned.

“Providing places for children is a basic need and we need to make sure essentials are in place.

“We have got to get places for children where demand is high and accessible to where pupils are or close by.

“It is a huge pressure with 1,800 more students than we were expecting last year which is the equivalent of a high school to accommodate in Bradford. We can’t carry on at that rate.”

Funding would come from the government’s privately financed Priority School Building Programme which replaced the scrapped Building Schools for the Future Programme.

Count Berry would not say how much the bid would be for, but said an average secondary school costs £40 million to build.

Primary schools, including Parkland, Haworth, Worth Valley, and secondary schools, including Aire Valley and Belle Vue Boys, have also been earmarked for possible re-builds if government cash is secured.

The bid will be discussed at the Children’s Services Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday before being considered by the Council’s decision making executive body next month.

Councillor Roger L’ Amie, Bradford Council’s shadow portfolio holder for Children’s Services, was unavailable for comment.