A ROW has broken out over shared council services in Worcestershire - with claims the management is "shrouded in mystery".

A shake-up of the regulatory systems overseeing shared public services around the county is kicking in this April to give it a new lease of life.

It follows a move to bring Trading Standards back under the control of Worcestershire County Council from this summer, amid concerns funding cuts could have left it on the brink of a legal challenge for not being up to scratch.

The scrapping of the old arrangements means a management board overlooking Worcestershire Regulatory Services is being disbanded, as well as various other alterations to the system.

It has led to concerns at Worcester City Council that scrutiny of the shared services is being kept at arms-length from them.

Councillor Adrian Gregson, opposition Labour group leader, said: "This 'joint committee' is systematic of the way shared services have been run in Worcestershire.

"There's not been a single mention of these changes at a cabinet meeting, the whole thing is shrouded in mystery."

Fellow Labour Councillor Paul Denham, speaking during a meeting of the full council, called for a decision over it to be delayed until the city's scrutiny committee had looked at it properly.

But Conservative Councillor Mike Johnson, who sits in the cabinet, said: "I am sorry the members opposite feel to aggrieved about this.

"I understand the concerns they have and share some of them, but these new arrangements must be approved - if your amendment goes ahead, when it comes to the 1st of April, what do we do then?"

Under the changes, a requirement is being brought in where any organisations "unable or unwilling" to maintain service levels or funding must "exit the partnership".

They will have the option of still getting services, but at cost levels set by the rest of the partner authorities.

That change is an attempt to avoid a repeat of the Trading Standards problems, where serious cuts in funding from various councils left bosses at County Hall fearful of the service failing.

Over the years shared services between councils have become more and more common in Worcestershire in the drive to save cash.

All sorts of functions including IT networks, auditing, public contact centres, animal welfare, licensing and even PR have come under different deals where the costs are split between different authorities.

The arrangements have become increasingly complex, but many councillors say they want greater influence in them.