DEALS have been struck over the running of 17 children's centres in Worcestershire following controversial council cuts, it has emerged.

Worcestershire County Council says it has reached agreements over all but three of the 20 sites which were affected by significant funding falls last autumn.

The only children's centres which still need detailed third party agreement are Maple Trees in Redditch, Apple Vale in Broadway and Treetops in Kidderminster.

But the rest have tenancy deals in place, most of them 'interim' ones with schools ahead of formal transfers, with childcare providers also involved.

The progress comes after months of vociferous debate between Conservative and Labour politicians about a shock 53 per cent funding cut.

The Tory leadership pressed ahead with its decision last October, with a yearly £6.4 million fund for 32 children's centres falling to £3 million.

But at the time the administration insisted none of its centres would be forced to close - and that commitment has been met, although services have been cut at more than a dozen.

A new briefing note, published for the children and families overview and scrutiny panel, also says a £30,000 fund designed to help centres through the transition period will be fully spent by the end of this school term.

Hannah Needham, a strategic commissioner for the council, said: "All of the 32 centres we own are still open, and still delivering services.

"Of the ones we are still negotiating on we are confident agreements can be reached."

Her comments were made during a scrutiny panel meeting, where Labour Councillor Paul Denham cited fresh concern over the changes.

"The ones being run by schools, I want to know how we are going to monitor them," he said.

"Staff in schools know how to run schools, but to my mind they are not experts at social care."

Conservative Councillor Bob Banks said: "Clearly a lot of work has been done, but there is more to do.

"We should give this time to bed down and come back to it in 2018."

Some services like stay and play classes for toddlers have remained universal despite the cuts.

Last year more 1,200 campaigners signed a petition to try and get the changes scrapped.

Half of the funding drop was down to the withdrawal of a dedicated Government grant.