This is how much Doncaster's last bid for city status cost in 2012, as Queen set to create more cities next year

The information was published in a Freedom of Information response nearly 10 years ago, when the the authority unsuccessfully applied to become a city when the honour was instead given to Chelmsford in Essex, St Asaph in Wales and Perth in Scotland.

The Government announced this week more cities would be created next year. Doncaster previously applied in 2002, 2010 and 2012.

The cost of the 2012 bid was revealed in a Freedom of Information request response in March, 2012.

In its response the council stated: “Our estimated cost of the bid so far is £652 spent on marketing literature, banners and courier costs.

"Producing the City Bid document was carried out by internal staff at no extra cost to the Council. Promoting and marketing the City Bid will also be carried out by internal staff and incorporated as part of our usual work in promoting Doncaster and local events which we would have done, regardless of whether we were bidding for city status.

They added that they did have a representative from an external PR Agency who sat on the bid’s Steering Committee but this is done on a voluntary basis and the agency did not

receive any fees for ideas and work carried out.

Chief executive of the business organisation Doncaster Chamber, Dan Fell, said yesterday he thought becoming a city would help bring in investment, skilled workers and tourists to Doncaster – but was no magic wand, and leaders needed to assess residents’ appetite for the campaign before making a decision on applying.

Doncaster Council has yet to comment. But in 2019, mayor Ros Jones supported the idea of bidding again.

She said at the time that Doncaster was right to bid again and the council was laying the groundwork for when the opportunity arose in future.

In 2000, Doncaster lost out to Brighton, Inverness and Wolverhampton. In 2002 it lost out to Preston, Stirling, Newport, and Northern Ireland's Lisburn and Newry.

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