ONE thousand jobs are to go at Blackburn with Darwen Council - a quarter of the entire workforce and 400 more than feared.

Today bosses unveiled their final £28miilion cuts proposals, which will also hit vital services including adult and child care, road repairs and street sweeping.

At least 500 of the job losses are expected to be compulsory, with staff learning their fate in the coming weeks.

Unions said the cuts were the worst since the 1980s and are already dealing with the first wave of compulsory job losses.

Graham Burgess, the council’s chief executive, said: “The council’s ability to service its communities is vastly reduced.”

The proposals include:

• The closure of three day-care centres.

• Repairs to potholes only where roads are deemed dangerous.

• No street sweeping at weekends.

• The closure of up to half of the borough’s play areas.

• Cuts to services dealing with vulnerable children.

• The potential closure of King George’s Hall for three months a year.

Council chiefs have been working on the proposals for the past few months since learning of the size of the grant cuts from central government before Christmas.

Today was the first time detailed proposals were unveiled and a final decision will be taken at next month’s budget meeting.

Announcing the measures, the council’s leader, Labour’s Kate Hollern, blamed the Government for cutting a quarter of the town hall’s grants, and said wealthier areas in the South were suffering far smaller reductions.

She said: “It is a sad state of affairs. Areas like Dorset have much smaller reductions but we have a far greater need. It’s all very depressing.

“We are dealing with real people and real lives here.”

Councils across Lancashire are facing similar decisions, with Lancashire County Council’s £179million cuts proposals also set to be agreed next month.