A KEIGHLEY councillor, whose ward includes some of the town's poverty hotspots, says measures are needed to tackle the problem long-term.

Zafar Ali was speaking following the announcement of a 22-point action plan aimed at helping the district's poorest people.

The blueprint, which includes measures such as offering people basic cooking instructions and encouraging them to use credit unions instead of payday lenders, has been drawn-up in the wake of a major review into poverty across Bradford district.

The review began two years ago, when Bradford Council's corporate overview and scrutiny committee decided it wanted to conduct a wide-ranging investigation into poverty levels.

Its report, which will go before the council's decision-making executive, says much valuable work is being carried out but that it is disjointed.

The aim is to bring together areas of work to produce a more robust response.

Cllr Ali, who represents Keighley Central, said: "We have food banks and mobile soup kitchens in Keighley, which do a great job and fulfil an important role, but they are not a long-term answer to the problems.

"We need to provide sustainable, respectful programmes to help people out of the situation they find themselves in – and, where appropriate, help them find jobs."

The committee review says Bradford is among the UK's most deprived districts, with demand for foodbanks and soup kitchens outstripping their capacity to grow.

Household debt levels are higher than average, as are levels of fuel and child poverty.

The report calls on the council to follow the lead of authorities that have drawn up a poverty strategy, with a councillor and an officer appointed as 'poverty champions' to oversee the work.

It says while there are a number of food banks operating in the district, none are open outside of working hours, which could prevent the working poor from accessing them.

It adds that many users of food banks "lack basic cooking skills and the kitchen equipment required", and suggests people should also be given instructions on how to cook food like pasta.

The report also says about 71,000 people of working age in the district have no qualifications, and it has called on the council's employment and skills team to set out how it plans to remedy this.

Committee chairman, Cllr Arshad Hussain, will also write to the Government setting out local charities' concerns about a sanctions system, under which people can have benefits stopped or suspended.

The report warns the sanctions can last up to three years, leaving claimants with no income.