Facing the cuts in South Yorkshire

The UK came out of the longest recession on record in January 2010 - but the pain is not over. Economists warn that the public sector will be the next victim of drastic cuts, and BBC Sheffield is looking for your stories.

Starting on Monday 1st March 2010 BBC Radio Sheffield will be finding out how the services YOU pay for will be affected by cuts of more than £36 million.

Councils across South Yorkshire have revealed that they are slashing their budgets over the next financial year to compensate for an anticipated drop in central government funding between 10-15%.

BBC News: Cuts could hit 1000 council jobs

As authorities get ready to set their budgets until April 2011, many of them have told BBC Sheffield that there will be tough decisions to make. Sheffield Council could see 1000 jobs being cut over the next three to five years.

From Monday 1st to Friday 5th March BBC Radio Sheffield is taking an in-depth look at the public service cuts.

We'll be looking at the ways your council plans to cut back and save money.

We also want to hear your stories. Send in your questions or comments and be part of the debate.

Phone [phone] or email [e-mail] to tell us if you work in the public sector and have been affected by the recession.

How it all started

It all started when the banks started to collapse at the end of 2007.

The banks had been gambling with savers' money, awarding themselves huge bonuses and in America had been lending money to people who would not be able to pay the mortgage on their homes.

People from private businesses and from the public sector have despaired about their jobs

The credit markets froze and by the middle of 2008 we were in financial meltdown. This became a global recession, from which the UK economy only emerged in January 2010.

Many local and national businesses went under, including the Burberry factory in Rotherham, the home furnishing group Roseby's, many local construction firms and dozens of small businesses. Steelmaker Corus announced heavy job losses while Woolworths and MFI closed their stores nationwide.

Britain technically scraped out of the recession in January 2010 when economic growth increased by just 0.1% in the final three months of 2009.

But the pain is not yet over; we are warned that as central government pushes the pain of massive cuts downwards, the public sector will be the next victim of drastic cuts.

BBC Sheffield wants your stories

· Do you work for a local authority? Have you had your hours reduced?

· Or have you already been made redundant from your job?

· Has a local service that you rely on been affected by spending cuts?

· Is your group or organisation worried about the future?

· Are you starting to see charges for services that up to now have been free or, at least, affordable?

Whatever your story and wherever you live in South Yorkshire or North Derbyshire, get in touch by calling BBC Radio Sheffield reporter Natalie Clifford.

Phone [phone] or email [e-mail]

BBC News: the global recession in detail