COUNCIL CHIEFS will discuss plans to cut more than £11m from its budget.

Lancashire County Council's cabinet is set to consider the further cuts package when it meets next week.

Town hall bosses said the cuts have been proposed following a 'detailed review' of service budgets.

If approved, more than £81m of savings would have been identified during this financial year.

The council said its financial position remains 'extremely challenging', with a forecasted funding gap of £144.492m in 2021/22.

The funding gap for 2018/19 is forecasted as £48.886m.

Geoff Driver, leader of Lancashire County Council, said: "In common with every council in the country we are having to make difficult decisions about how we use our resources while ensuring the books are balanced.

"We are absolutely committed to funding the services that we know people value.

"We have done that with our programme of reopening libraries, investing in good quality roads, and supporting bus services across the county.

"However the county council's financial situation is very challenging and one of our key priorities is to create a more financially stable council that will enable us to future-proof our improvements to critical services for the most vulnerable in our communities.

"These proposals have identified significant savings all of which will now be carefully considered by cabinet.

"Going forward we will need to make more savings but we are working hard to protect front-line services especially for safeguarding children and other vulnerable members of society."