Ex-children's centre sold to make council savings

A former council-owned children's centre has sold for more than triple its guide price at auction.

Mortimer House Children's Centre in east Bradford is one of 150 assets being sold in a bid by Bradford Council to balance its books and stave off bankruptcy.

The building on Mortimer Avenue, which includes a plot of land, had a guide price of £90,000 and sold for £325,000.

However, a former children's care home valued at £750,000 failed to sell during the same auction.

The local authority closed Valley View, off Lister Lane, in 2022 as part of a shake-up of its care home systems.

Another asset that failed to sell was a 1.85-acre site at Cliffe Lane West in Baildon after receiving no bids.

Bradford Council was granted "exceptional financial support" by the government, meaning it can use loans to try to balance its books.

It also allows the local authority to use income from property sales to pay for services such as social care and bin collections, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

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