Projects helping vulnerable and disadvantaged children in Oxfordshire will be hard hit by Government cuts to a group that helps fund them.

Last year, the Oxfordshire Children's Fund was set up with the promise of £3.3m of Government money over three years to help fund more than 50 mainly voluntary and community projects.

But the fund has been told by the Government that its grant for 2004-2005 will be cut by 15 per cent and cut by 30 per cent in 2005-2006.

However, a spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said since the cuts were announced, new resources had been found, meaning the national budget for 2004-2005 would be £160m - only slightly short of the original £164.6m. She said partnerships would receive details of their revised allocations within the next week.

But Penny Faust, independent chairman of the county's fund, said: "We were promised this two weeks ago and we still haven't heard back. The Government has changed the goalposts and its mind so much over the last six months we would be very unwise to plan for anything less than 15 per cent.

"We're being forced to break our trust with the very groups of children and young people that this Government says it wants to help.

"It's outrageous that these punitive cuts have been imposed on us at the point when many of our projects are fully under way."

The Oxfordshire Children's Fund partnership includes the learning and culture and social and health care directorates of Oxfordshire County Council, along with other voluntary and community organisations, parents and children.

Projects that have received funding include schemes that provide play and leisure activities, parent support and creative arts events.

The Oxfordshire Youth Offending Team won the biggest share of funding to help children at risk of committing offences.

Mike Simm, head of the Oxfordshire Youth Offending Service, said the cuts would mean £30,000 less to spend over the coming year on three schemes designed to identify and support vulnerable eight- to 13-year-olds.