by political editor Paul Francis

County councillors will vote today on a £94million package of savings and further job cuts as Kent County Council seeks to balance its books.

The ruling Conservative administration will say its budget will safeguard key services - but will face opposition claims the savings will hit vulnerable young children and the elderly.

One main area of controversy will be an £18m cut to the adult care budget.

The council is expected to rubber stamp a freeze on council tax bills, meaning average bills for KCC's share of the bill will stay at £1,047 for homes in Band D.

KCC had planned to save £60m, but that rose to £94m after the government announced it was cutting the level of grants to town halls by even more than anticipated.

Unions are expected to stage a protest outside Maidstone's County Hall ahead of the day-long meeting after being told a further 100 redundancies will be needed.

KCC is in the third year of a programme to shed 1,500 posts to cope with the government's austerity drive.

The council will also be dipping into its reserves to the tune of £9m - so-called "rainy day" money - to cushion the impact of the fresh round of savings.

Spending on children's services will also be cut by £5.3m but that would be offset by additional investment into the service.

And a range of other cuts will hit funding for the arts, school sports and music.

These include a cut in the annual grant to the Turner Contemporary of £100,000, to £1m; £225,000 less for keeping public footpaths clear and a £200,000 reduction in the budget for sports development.

In addition, academy schools will be charged for support and courses run by the authority which they have previously not had to pay for. That will raise nearly £400,000.

A recruitment freeze on community wardens will save KCC £280,000, while Kent Music faces a £200,000 cut in its budget to support school music.

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