OTLEY’S Business Improvement District has recorded a major underspend in its first year.

The scheme (Bid) uses money, provided by businesses within its area giving one per cent of their rateable value annually, to invest in town centre improvements to boost the economy.

Its financial statement for 2014-15 shows that the levy brought in more than £70,000, while the group had budgeted on spending some £64,000.

The actual total expenditure, however, came to just £14,159 – leaving extra funds for coming years that the Bid intends to put to good use, as it explains on its website.

It says: “We have realised that running the Bid as a voluntary group, without paid assistance, has slowed the implementation of many of our aims and objectives and we needed to address this issue.

“The solution we have decided upon is to re-allocate the 2014-2015 underspend, spreading it over the next four years.”