THOUSANDS of vulnerable residents could have their care services reduced under new council cost-cutting plans.

Staffordshire County Council wants to review care packages and payments for elderly and disabled adults as part of its bid to make £120 million of savings in three years.

It is estimated the move would save between £3 million and £4 million a year.

But it comes as figures show that, even without any budget reductions, the authority's social care and health directorate is already forecast to plunge up to £8 million into the red this year.

That figure makes up most of the overall deficit of £9.17 million predicted across the council between now and April.

Worried councillors have vowed to investigate claims the department's budget structure results in deliberate overspends when other areas are having to make efficiency savings.

Social care and health has a £180.5 million budget this year – of which almost £172 million is earmarked for adults' services – and accounts for 40 per cent of the council's total revenue budget of £457 million.

A council report said the authority is to "address the longer-term sustainability of funding adult social care".

Options for making savings include "the transformation of traditional in-house home care service" into a more responsive operation.

Changes would focus on reducing demand for council care services by reviewing care packages, rehabilitation programmes and contracts.

Managers hope the measures could save £1.5 million over the next seven months.

The report says: "Reducing current commitments will be a significant challenge, but remains a key target for the directorate's efficiency."

A similar review of adult care services is already under way at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, which is encouraging residents who receive local authority care to accept direct payments instead.

They can then use them to buy in their own care from other sources.

However, its personalisation strategy also includes higher home care fees for many people with savings or private pensions, as well as increased costs for day-centre users.

And critics claim the proposed changes will be unworkable in many cases, as they are too complex for many older people to understand.

Members of the county council's assets and budget scrutiny committee have agreed to investigate spending levels within social care and health to identify savings.

Councillor Alan White, a Conservative, said repeated overspends indicate spending targets may have been unrealistic.

He said: "Social care and health ran over budget in 2009/10, and seems to have a structural overspend again.

"Surely we should be budgeting for that from the outset."

Councillor Philip Jones, committee vice-chairman and a Tory, said: "If there is repeated overspending then there is either chronic inefficiency or major under-funding."