A £75,000 offer by Redditch Council to help create a new skills centre for the Pakistani community has been withdrawn, the Advertiser can exclusively reveal.

The money had been offered to the Redditch New Mosque Trust to go towards the £300,000 needed to buy land in Smallwood earmarked for a mosque and community centre.

But the trust rejected the offer because it didn't agree with the terms and ownership.

Council Leader David Cartwright explained: "It has not been possible to reach an agreement so the council's offer no longer applies.

"The council would be willing to buy a freehold interest but is not prepared to give a straight grant, which appears to be what the trust is asking for."

"What we were doing was using capital money to buy the land."

Mr Cartwright said in the future, the trust would have to apply for a grant the same way every other organisation has to.

The trust did not want to comment.