The inclusion of Bradford in a pilot scheme to help nearly 64,000 of the district's needy and vulnerable children between the ages of five and 13 is to be welcomed. There is surely much that can be done over the next three years with the £8.1 million allocated to the district as one of the 40 local authorities named as beneficiaries under the scheme, to be run in conjunction with the Children's Fund.

Bradford certainly suffers from more than its fair share of poverty. This city has some of the poorest Council wards in the country. It has a high incidence of the sort of health problems which thrive when diet and living conditions are poor.

Children are among those who suffer most. Anything which makes life better for the youngsters and helps to improve their situation and their prospects is obviously good for them, and will be good for Bradford as well. Poverty breeds disaffection, and disaffection spells trouble if it is not tackled.

So this £8.1 million is more than just a challenge to poverty. It is also an investment in Bradford's social stability through the scheme's aims of reducing truancy and exclusions, improving educational performance, cutting youth crime and improving health and social care and access to services generally.

It is also good that the scheme hopes to involve the children themselves, as well as their families and communities, in the decision-making process on how the money should be spent. They are the people in need, and therefore well placed to understand how those needs can best be met.