£109m of cuts announced by Staffordshire County Council - putting 38 youth centres at risk

Bosses who released initial details of the savings refused to rule out job losses, with redundancies thought to be likely given the extent of the cuts. However deputy council leader Ian Parry said he does not anticipate job losses on the scale of those in Wolverhampton, Walsall and Birmingham. Both city councils expect 1,000 jobs to go while 332 positions face being axed in Walsall.

Announcing a consultation over youth services which is due to start in the new year, Councillor Parry said only one in five of the county's 75,000 young people is using youth centres.

He said: "It's not a case of simply cutting or closing. By being innovative and looking at how we can work with other groups or service providers outside the council, we could actually provide a better service than the one we are currently."

But Councillor Parry admitted 38 youth centres run by the county council faced a review.

Chiefs need to find an extra £2.6m next year to pump into children in care, and an extra £1.5m will be invested in people with learning disabilities. There are plans to freeze council tax in 2013/14 - but those proposals are dependent on details of the council's grant settlement from Government later this month.

Council leader Philip Atkins said: "There are challenges ahead and tough decisions to be made, but there are also exciting opportunities as the national economy recovers. It is our role at the county council to put the right foundations in place that encourage economic growth, create jobs and the prosperity that brings.

"We cannot do this alone, and need to work with people, with business and all our partners to make this a reality and deliver a better Staffordshire for future generations."

Councillor Parry added: "By focusing on what matters most to people in Staffordshire and finding new, more efficient and more effective ways of working, we have made a good start on the transformation of Staffordshire County Council and the county's public sector to meet the needs of local people today and tomorrow.

"However we know the job is nowhere near done. New challenges demand new thinking, not least because people don't want to be passive recipients of services that no longer fit how we live and work, may be expensive and only benefit a few.

"We are working with residents, voluntary groups, partners and the private sector to find new ways to improve lives. Our approach is about listening, creating the right conditions for Staffordshire's people to flourish, and allowing people to get on with achieving their goals and aspirations.

"It is also essential for us to work even closer with public sector partners, so that the £7.5 billion of public money spent in Staffordshire each year is spent wisely and effectively, reducing the burden on taxpayers."