AN all-party group has produced a highly critical report about cost-cutting plans to replace most of Wiltshire Council’s youth service with ‘community led’ provision.

It claims major changes will be made “without time for their impact to be fully considered”, and vulnerable young people will receive less support.

The group’s chairman, Cllr Jon Hubbard, said: “What really scares me is that this is saving today to spend tomorrow.

“What Wiltshire is not thinking about is the preventative work that youth services undertake with kids who might otherwise end up on drugs, committing crime, or in prison.”

Council leaders have already reduced their savings target - from a youth budget of £1.2m - from £500,000 to £190,000 by reallocating some funds following a public outcry.

But they still plan to axe the equivalent of 50 fulltime posts, affecting 144 staff who have been left “feeling their contribution is not valued”, according to the report.

Figures used to justify the cuts, claiming to show how many teenagers use the service, are too low, it says.

They were compiled during the exam season and summer holidays and do not include street and school-based youth work.

And “financial pressures and employment regulations” meant the service review was rushed, without wide enough consultation.

The council’s leaders want area boards to be given annual amounts to hand out to community-based organisations organising young people’s activities.

But Cllr Hubbard’s group says the boards are not experts on commissioning services, and will need help, at a cost.

Voluntary bodies may come to rely on handouts rather than fundraising, and will struggle to find enough helpers or to pay for criminal record checks. They will need access to legal advice.

Many young people will not confide in adults with links to their family or school. And untrained volunteers may not recognise the signs that someone needs help.

Because of changes to the ring-fenced grant system, overall spending on young people risks being cut by a further £291,000, the report warns.

Meanwhile, the few council staff left will effectively become social workers, stepping in only when things go wrong. They will have no time to build up relationships.

The police have warned that fewer activities for young people could mean more antisocial behaviour.

The report points out that Surrey County Council managed to save £4.5m from its youth budget without any redundancies or youth centre closures.

It puts forward alternative proposals which would keep 25 youth workers, create nine apprenticeships, and still leave £365,000 for area boards to give out.

The council’s Cabinet will make a decision on May 15.