MASSIVE budget cuts will not mean an immediate wholesale closure of public services, according to the chief executive of Bury Council.

Mike Owen joined council leader Cllr Mike Connolly at this week's meeting of Radcliffe Township Forum to present plans to cut £11.6 million from the council's yearly budget.

The proposals, which were announced in November and will mark a sixth successive year of cuts, are set to result in a significant blow to the council's ability to provide services, but Mr Owen said the immediate impact will not be catastrophic.

He told residents at Radcliffe Civic Suite: "We have a very poor settlement from the government compared to other authorities and there are lots of areas where we are getting clobbered.

"Costs for waste collection and adult care are going to go up, and that means that other services will have to be cut. Soon, there will be no money for things like highways or parks. There just won't be, and that seems crazy.

"We are looking at ways of making the most of the grants available to us, but there will be bodies going out of the council as we restructure.

"There is nothing to suggest that there will be wholesale closures of services this year. But it does mean that they won't be able to do what they have in the past."

Cllr Connolly added: "I can't stress enough the size of the cuts facing us and the impact that will have on services.

"We have had to cut £54 million already since I became leader and now another £11.6 million. We can't expect that not to have an effect on the services that we provide and deliver.

"It would be dishonest of me to say that there won't be any closures of services. We are exploring alternative ways of delivering services and new partnerships we can create.

"There will need to be a different relationship with residents and their understanding of what the council can and can't do.

"People expect high quality services but we now need to renegotiate that contract.

"If we were funded at the England average then we wouldn't be making any cuts this year. We would have an extra £10 million to spend."

After taking questions from members of the public, the pair warned that previous years of cuts had been "easy" compared to what was to come.

Mr Owen also moved to reassure people that the regeneration of Radcliffe town centre would continue and is likely to be boosted once plans to build a new superstore are confirmed.

He said: "When we interviewed for the new superstore we spoke to people who own buildings around the town centre, and they said that they are really just waiting to see what happens. Regeneration is a gradual process, and that can be frustrating, but it is happening."