Pausing to reflect, the singer is momentarily overawed.

and consecutive inadequate Ofsted ratings.Charlotte Ramsden, chief executive officer for BCFT, said: "We are committed to continuing to work together with Bradford Council to deliver improved services and reduce costs."

According to an executive report published last month Bradford "faces financial challenges on an unprecedented scale".The Labour leader of Bradford Council, councillor Susan Hinchcliffe, has previouslyThe £42m includes £32.8m on residential care placement costs and £5.5m on staffing budgets due to agency workers.

Ms Ramsden said: "It has taken time to address the pressures that already existed in relation to number of children in care and high levels of agency staff."She added that BCFT has a three-year improvement plan to prioritise early intervention, while reducing the number of children needing care.

Ms Ramsden also said that BCFT will "make greater use of family networks to help them keep children safe" and "reduce our need for external residential care through further development of our own homes".

She said the trust was also making " good progress in safely reducing agency staff".''People want things to get better, and people want to know that there is hope on the horizon," he said.

''They want to be convinced that their government will fight to make things better.''He said Reform were riding high but do not "really have any policies on which to be challenged or to be scrutinised".

The former minister said the challenge for Labour was "showing that change is on the horizon, change can be made and things will improve"."That is the confidence barrier politics needs to get through by the next Senedd elections," he said.