Community groups in Bradford are bidding for a share of £150,000 of Government cash to improve facilities in their area.

The groups, which include out-of-school playgroups, over-60s and adult education, will give three-minute presentations explaining why they deserve the money tomorrow at the Highfield Community Centre in Drewry Road, Keighley, between 9.30am to 4.30pm.

Keighley residents will listen to the presentations and decide how a total of £130,000 should be divided up among the community groups.

Alan Budge, Bradford Vision's neighbourhood partnership manager for Keighley, said: "People are really excited about the chance to decide how public money should be spent in their communities and we've been impressed by the grant applications which have flooded in."

The event is the brainchild of Bradford Vision's Neighbourhood Renewal Team. Vision is a partnership of public agencies, voluntary groups and businesses, and funds a variety of regeneration schemes. Cash will be divided fairly between neighbourhoods identified as needing extra support.

The voting sessions follow a similar initiatives by Bradford Vision two years ago when residents decided how £600,000 should be handed out to environmental projects across the Bradford district.

Residents in Ravenscliffe and Greengates have already been given the chance to vote on how £20,000 should be spent in their community.

In the true spirit of community, groups which were successful in their bids clubbed together to give a share of their money to those who were not awarded anything.

Greengates Bowling Club, received £4,000, to make the club accessible for the disabled, and gave £1,000 back to help other projects and Kipling Court 2 Tenants' Association, which was awarded £2,784, returned £360.

Ian Kenning, co-ordinator for the GateWay Centre at the Ravenscliffe Community Association, is bidding for money to improve the area around the centre to turn it into a community garden and create 16 allotments plots for residents and organisations.

He said: "It is great that there are all these community projects taking part and rather than the Council deciding where the money should go, it is people who live here and people involved in local project deciding."

Janine Thomas, manager of the Eccleshill Community Playgroup, is to bid for money. She said: "I think it's important to give the community the chance to vote and to have a say in where the money goes and the opportunity to let them know what is happening in their area."

The money comes from the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, a national scheme which aims to enable England's most deprived local authorities to improve services, narrowing the gap between deprived areas and the rest of the country.

e-mail: ali.davies@bradford.newsquest.co.uk