A COUNCILLOR is spearheading efforts to bring derelict land off Fell Lane back into use.

Adrian Farley is helping residents who want to spruce up the triangle of scrubland in Westfell Way, Keighley.

Community workers Pip Gibson and Karen Wadsworth are also supporting the campaign to spruce up the neglected area of private land.

The trio hosted a public meeting last summer to gather the views of residents about what should be done with the land.

They set up a stall and chatted with people living in nearby streets while serving tea and coffee, funded with £500 from social landlord Yorkshire Housing.

Cllr Farley said one of the main issues raised by residents was the “eyesore” state of the land. He added: “Some people were asking for a play area, but the bulk of the people just wanted it tidying up, bulbs planting and looking nice.”

He said in the past that residents had planted flowers around the site but these were accidentally pulled up earlier this year by a team clearing overgrown vegetation and weeds.

He added: “I was worried about fly-tipping but thankfully that hasn’t happened.”

Cllr Farley said Bradford Council officers are currently trying to discover who owns the land, saying: “It doesn’t seem to be registered. A number of residents said they own parts of the land and that it was on their deeds but no one has shown us evidence.”

He said some residents suggested the land was sold to Yorkshire Housing several years ago when the organisation built affordable homes in the neighbourhood.

He added: “Yorkshire Housing has said it doesn’t own it, and the council definitely doesn’t.”

Residents will be given an update on the campaign during a Christmas event in December at the Yorkshire Housing office in nearby Salisbury Road.