Success in sport can mean a great deal to a community. That's why there has been such a well-spring of support for Bradford City. Generally, the Bradford public fully appreciate the importance of the club's survival to give it a chance once again to become a source of pride for the city, and have risen enthusiastically to the challenge of raising money to keep it alive.

Bradford Bulls are a rather different story. As Challenge Cup Winners, Super League Champions and World Club Champions they are a huge ongoing success by anybody's standards, both on the field and commercially, and something for all Bradford to be proud of.

And what's more, they have demonstrated how keen they are to give something back to the community which supports them so well. Their Community Development Programme is considered to be one of the best in UK sport and has been praised by Lord Ouseley in his 2001 report Community Pride Not Prejudice and by the Health Select Committee.

It is excellent news, then, that the Bulls have decided to build on the success of this programme by establishing a charitable foundation. Its aims are laudable ones: to deliver services and activities for the benefit of the community by supporting education, health and well-being, social inclusion, social cohesion and civic pride.

It is splendid to see this club, which through its high profile is in a good position to influence the way Bradford people see themselves and their city, affirming its roots in the local community in this way.