A FIGHT between Conservative and Labour over the fair sharing of community development grants has frozen decision making in Shipley.

Angry Labour councillors in Windhill and Wrose are challenging the Tory-dominated Shipley Area Committee which has approved plans to split a reduced grant of £68,000 with Baildon Community Link and Kirkgate Community Centre, Shipley, both getting £20,000, while Community Associations in Bolton Wood and North East Windhill will only gain £28,000 between them.

Ward councillors Susan Hinchcliffe, an executive member of Labour-run Bradford Council, and Vanda Greenwood spoke passionately for the reduced grant to be split equally between the four centres with each getting £17,000.

And they were supported in the vote against the decision by Baildon Conservative Cllr Debbie Davies, who wished to highlight the need for equal treatment of all five districts by the Council.

Now the Winhill and Wrose ward's other councillor Alex Ross-Shaw has "called in" the area committee decision on the grounds there was not a full discussion.

"It will now go the Corporate Overview Scrutiny Committee for debate and which may take a decision or refer it back to the Area Committee with guidance," said Cllr Ross-Shaw.

"The option to take £6,000 from Windhill and Wrose - one of the district's most deprived areas - and give it to Shipley and in particular Baildon - the wealthiest ward - was done suddenly without proper debate."

Shipley Area Committee chairman Tory Cllr David Heseltine said there had been a "heated discussion" and the merits of both options had been presented.

"Instead of Cllr Hinchcliffe voting for more money to go to her own ward, she should have ensured Shipley got a fair settlement in the first place," Cllr Heseltine (Bingley) said, referring to how Bradford West gets 26.5 per cent of the district's community development funding, while Shipley only gets 14.7 per cent.

"The Aire Valley has felt the knife most keenly while Labour protects its heartland."

Baildon Conservative Cllr Val Townend said it was ironic that Labour councillors were complaining about cuts imposed by their own executive.

"If it had been Baildon losing out, they'd have been over the moon," she said.

Cllr Greenwood backed the need for the decision to be reviewed.

She said: "We're really disappointed. There was no discussion of the second option so everyone was really confused that it was put forward and accepted by the Tories. We'd just like it looked at again with a proper debate."

Cllr Davies said it was not all party politics.

"I wasn't looking at things just on Baildon's behalf - I think Council money should be shared out equally without central Bradford centre always getting the most."

Cllr Hinchcliffe insisted Council cash was fairly distributed based on need - so poor areas would get more.

"Windhill & Wrose ward has some areas which are in the top one per cent of poverty in the country, never mind in Shipley and it would be a dereliction of duty to deny this.

"It's basic common sense to distribute budgets based on practical need, not abstract ideology," she said.