Age UK has opened a consultation on plans to axe 100 staff from its lifeline training centres, with reports today claiming that government funding for the centres was pulled after a report by Ofsted deemed the centres “inadequate”.

The announcement comes days after the charity came under attack over services it offered to elderly beneficiaries, including energy deals, insurance and equity release.

A spokesman for Age UK told Civil Society News the charity had “made the difficult decision to consult on closing Age UK's government-funded training business”.

“We will now be reviewing operations and are liaising with all staff to support them during this time. We have not made any final decisions."

Cuts will be made to 12 centres across the UK. According to a report today in the Daily Mirror, managers at the centres were informed last week and staff will now face a 30 day consultation period.

The Mirror reported that the centres were closed after an Ofsted report led the European Social Fund and Skills Funding Agency to pull funding.

Ofsted, European Social Fund and Skills Funding Agency were approached for comment but did not respond by the time of going to press.