Ofsted inspectors judged safeguarding in the authority as "inadequate"last December and seven children are known to have died in the areathrough neglect or abuse since 2004.
Doncaster was also the centre of a media storm earlier this year, whenit was revealed that two young brothers who tortured two boys had justbeen taken into foster care.
A letter addressed to managers last week said services across thecouncil have been asked to identify cost reductions of 15 per cent overthe next three years.
Unison is concerned the call for cuts will put further pressure on thebeleaguered department. "We were surprised to see this departmenttargeted given the difficulty children's services have had," said RobinSymonds, regional organiser for the union. "When you add the mayor'sannouncement that he wants to cut council tax by three per cent itdoesn't make sense."
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