KEIGHLEY councillors have given the green light for detailed talks to enable an ambitious takeover of Bradford Council assets, despite fears over how much this would cost.

Members of Keighley Town Council voted overwhelmingly to allow the allotments and landscapes committee to conduct further negotiations which ultimately aim at taking over the management of a swathe of public spaces and memorials by the end of 2017.

Councillor Gary Pedley said that while he supported the move, he was concerned about future financial consequences.

"Although I've no hesitation in voting for this because it's only about going forward with further negotiations, my worries would kick in at a later stage when we start talking about costs," he said.

"Keighley people are already paying Bradford Council for what is meant to be the upkeep of these assets.

"If we relieve Bradford Council of these sites the district council should give us some money to go with them, and not just leave us to go back to the tax payer and get them to put their hands in their pockets again."

The town council has listed 11 Bradford Council-owned sites which it is hoping the town council can take on.

These include: Keighley Town Hall Square; Redcar (Keighley) Tarn; Granby Lane playground; North Dean Road playground; Parkwood Aire Valley Road Football Ground; vacant land at Thwaites Brow; Keighley Cenotaph; Morton Cemetery War Memorial; Oakworth Park War Memorial, and former allotments at Holden Park in Oakworth.

Cllr John Kirby, chairman of the allotments and landscapes committee, said: "I don't know how much it's going to cost, I really don't.

"We still have more meetings to attend and there is still a long way to go.

"There could be a [town council] precept increase to cover this, I'm not going to lie but let us move forward and let us get some figures to bring back to you.

"I'm hoping we can achieve this by the end of the year, and I know that's a big ask.

"We're not going to get an asset transfer, but what we can get is a service level agreement with a lease."

Cllr Kirby stressed that he and his colleagues were deliberately not targeting locations such as parks which would "cost a fortune" for the town council to run.

He acknowledged the support he had received for his committee's plans from the town clerk and from both Labour and independent town councillors.

Backing the proposals, Cllr Luke Maunsell said: "We all know the limitations that we have, but this is going to be done properly and some of these assets might have to drop off the list.

"It's about giving something back to the people of this town."

Cllr Peter Corkindale also spoke strongly in support of the plans, arguing that without the town council's positive intervention Keighley could be left with even more derelict eyesores.

Cllr Andrea Walker spoke of the importance of taking responsibility for the recreation areas and war memorials on the list of assets, to ensure they can continue to be enjoyed by future generations.