BRADFORD Council is one of the most representative in the country, according to a new study on the numbers of black and minority Councillors.

Operation Black Vote, a group that aims to get more black and ethnic minority groups engaging with politics, has released an audit of political representation for 123 single tier local authorities.

It comes just days before people across the country go to the polls for the latest local elections.

The audit finds that Bradford Council is one of the top authorities when it comes to the Council chambers reflecting the ethnic makeup of their populations.

Out of the 90 Councillors currently sitting on Bradford Council, 28 Councillors, or 31.1 per cent, are identified as BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic).

Of the total population in the Bradford District, 32.5 per cent are classed as BAME, meaning there is only a disparity of 1.4 per cent.

It is slightly better than neighbouring Leeds - 13.1 per cent of its 99 Councillors are classed as BAME, compared to 15 per cent of the wider population.

And in Calderdale 5.9 per cent of Councillors are BAME compared to 10.3 per cent of the wider population - a 4.4 per cent disparity.

Many other areas of the country areas fare less well.

The report reveals that there are 40 local authorities in areas with BAME populations of between 6 per cent and 12 per cent have either zero BAME representation or one BAME councillor.

These areas include Brighton, Bournemouth and Stockport.

Brighton and Hove Council covers an area with a 10.9 per cent BAME community, but its 54 seat Council has no BAME Councillors.

Operation Black Vote calls the study a “wake up call” and claims a lack of representation in Council chambers can lead to alienation in many communities.

Bradford Council boasts a number of firsts when it comes to representation. In 1985 Mohammed Ajeeb became Lord Mayor of Bradford - the first Pakistani Mayor in UK history.

And in 2011 Naveeda Ikram became the first Muslim woman to be elected Mayor in UK history.

A Council spokesperson: “Bradford District has a diverse population, which is reflected in the current political make-up of the council.

“Whilst the Council administers local elections, it is Bradford residents, the voters themselves that decide who becomes a councillor, when they visit the polls on Election Day.

“We would encourage everyone who is registered to vote, please use your vote in the local elections, on Thursday, 2 May, to have your say on who represents you at a local level.”

The report says: “We have been saying for nearly 25 years that everyone benefits when we have an inclusive and representative democracy.

“When a BAME person can see themselves in positions of elected power, they feel they can aspire to that role and feel they have a sense of belonging.

“However, when they don’t and communities feel alienated, not listened to, and most importantly, local services are not meeting their needs, serious problems can arise.

“The lack of representative democracy not only undermines our shared sense of belonging, it also exacerbates effectively tackling problems around knife crime, the Grenfell Tower disaster, and the disproportionate levels of BAME school exclusions.”

The report calls for all political parties to ndertake a BAME democratic audit of members, staff and elected officials at local and national level, and for national and local government agencies to undertake the largest voter registration drive ever seen in the UK to boost engagement in politics.