PLANS have been unveiled to boost and improve children's services being offered by a county council.

North Yorkshire County Council's children and young people's service is changing how it offers some services.

At present several services are dealt with separately by different county council offices but now they are to be brought together.

The areas being looked into are processing applications for free school meals, home to school transport admissions and the assessment and review of special educational needs.

Currently these functions are carried out at local education offices in Northallerton, Scarborough, Skipton, Harrogate, and Selby.

Councillor John Watson, executive member for the children and young people's service said: "As a council, we have a duty to spend public money carefully.

"If we can reduce costs by employing the kind of technologies which are increasingly commonplace in other walks of life, then we should do so "This is about delivering consistent administrative processes and service standards across the county that will be supported by up-to-date technology and different working practices.

"It is about reducing costs by achieving efficiencies, whilst at the same time improving access by having one telephone number available over a longer period of time every day - including for the first time, every Saturday morning."

Over the next two years the plan will see the children's service's current 60 staff reduced by 24.

The county council estimates this will create a net saving of £400,000.

Cynthia Welbourn, corporate director of the children and young people's service, said: "It's important to stress that our front line specialist support staff such as educational psychologists, parent partnership co-ordinators and family support workers will continue to be locally based.

"It is the administrative work which we intend to centralise. The council's new Customer Service Centre will take on some of the work and the new countywide network of Customer Access Points will also be there for face to face enquiries.

"We also intend to retain sufficient specialist staff at County Hall and to ensure that we are visible and available locally when needed."

The first phase of the changes is likely to begin taking place next year.