CUTTING £53,000 from money earmarked for vulnerable children is one way Ealing Council is tackling its budget shortfall.

Around £21.5million in savings must be made before March if it is to avoid getting less money from the Government next year.

But officers believe £18.5m can be made up without cuts to service users.

Conservative finance spokesman Barbara Yerolemou said she could not believe the council could turn things around in such a short timeframe.

At a cabinet meeting this month, Mrs Yerolemou branded some savings as "dangerous" or unrealistic.

She said: "A cut of £53,000 to our most vulnerable children, those on the protection register whom we have a statutory obligation to protect, is a very dangerous saving."

However, a council spokesman insisted savings would not affect services. Most savings would come from cutting temporary staff, increasing car park charges and in reducing administration costs across council departments.

He said: "Like all councils we have to demonstrate we are using taxpayers' money to the best effect. The approach we have taken is to review growth pressures and savings options. We want to sit down with the unions and get a consensus on the number of jobs involved."

He added the council would not want to affect services like adoption which had been rated highly in its recent comprehensive performance assessment.

"We would not want to jeapordise that by making drastic cuts to services," he said.