Keeping Liverpool's children's centres open is a 'line in the sand' for the city council despite a potential £40m budget shortfall, a senior cabinet member warned.
Children's services boss Barry Kushner said last night that the importance of the centres, which provide a range of services to help kids and parents across the city, meant the council would fight as hard as it can to keep them.
That's in spite of a potentially crippling budget next year due to an overdue government review of local government spending.
Senior councillors have estimated a new funding formula for local authorities could strip between £20m and £40m from the city's budget.
The new formula is rumoured to remove an authority's level of deprivation as a factor when considering what money it will get from central government.
But it has been delayed for months as Westminster grapples with Britain's exit from the EU , leaving council officers struggling to construct budgets for the coming financial year.
Councillor Kushner said he was 'absolutely and totally committed to children's centres' at last night's education and children's social care select committee.
He said: "The children's centres are a line in the sand for me personally.
"I also believe that is a commitment that is shared right across the council."
His comments came on the back of a report by a group of former educators that praised the work of the children's centres for helping parents as well as improving health and education for kids across Liverpool .
But their report also warned that any significant attempt to stretch the services provided by centres would have negative effects on the city's children.
Liverpool is unusual among local authorities for its protection of children's centres.
Across the country many have been closed or had access to their services drastically reduced in response to cuts to local government.
The city council has had 64% of its budget cut since austerity began.
And many people across the city now fear more cuts could lead to non-statutory services like parks and leisure centres being put under even more pressure in coming years.
