ONE of the biggest developments in Bradford city centre could soon get even bigger.

Plans to turn an empty office block – Kingfisher House in Filey Street – into a 35,000sq ft world food “centre of excellence” were approved by Bradford Council in 2017.

The centre would include a restaurant, banqueting facilities and a training centre for the next generation of international food chefs, which would train between 50 and 100 people a year.

Work on the multi million pound project has started, but now a new planning application has been submitted to Bradford Council that will see an additional annex built on the site.

The original plans were predicted to create up to 250 jobs, and the new annex will create an additional 15 to 20 employees.

The plans say that the annex will allow the business to expand into catering, and it will include baking facilities.

The scheme is a partnership between Jinnah Restaurant and the World Curry Festival, and the application says: “The applicant has facilitated further discussions with partners in the city to enhance the vision to create a Centre of Excellence in world food, with skills training, restaurant and hospitality/ conferencing facility and a boutique hotel.”

It says the additional annex will “see the delivery of an even better multi-million pound facility.”

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Saleem Akhtar, managing director at Jinnah Group, said the original plans were budgeted at around £5 million, but with the new additions the scheme was likely to represent an investment of around £7/8 million.

He said: “It has really expanded - it will include a hotel, conference facilities, benqueting, the trainign academy. It will have the bakery, a florists, a car hire facility. It is going to have everything. We want to make it like a five star hotel. It will make Bradford one of the best places to visit. There will be lots of activities going on here. This annex will be mainly catering facilities - it will be providing catering for other events off site. This will really expand the training we are providing the chefs - they will not just be learning how to cook for guests on site.”

He hopes that the centre will solidify Bradford’s foodie credentials, pointing out his restaurant has regular visitors from places like Nottingham and Manchester.

Mr Akhtar said he hopes the first phase of the centre will be finished by next Summer.

A decision on the new annex application is expected next month.