A catering firm has joined forces with council chiefs in a tribunal battle about redundancy payments.

The panel will decide who will pay the money to sacked dinner ladies.

West Sussex County Council, former caterers Castle View Services, and new firm Sedaxo, formerly Gardner Merchant, all claim they are not responsible for redundancy payouts of £300,000 to former staff.

A total of 500 dinner ladies lost their jobs when the council scrapped hot meals in schools but they still have not been paid.

Now the legal teams of the council and Sedaxo have clubbed together they could be liable for each other's costs if either party loses the case.

If Sedaxo loses the case, taxpayers in West Sussex could end up picking up the bill for the catering firm.

But council chiefs say it was the right decision to merge the two legal teams as they would be using the same information.

They stressed no arrangements had been made as to who would make payments if either party lost the case.

The council cut the hot meals service in an attempt to save £500,000 a year and made the dinner staff redundant in September.

The new contract was awarded for cold lunch boxes and councillors defended their actions by saying the number of children having a hot meal had slumped.

The hearing is due to start on September 4 in Brighton and expected to last ten days.

The council believes Castle View Services should make the payments because it employed the staff as part of an undertaking which ceased.

Council bosses also claim Castle View is responsible for the contracts of managers employed in the meals service and not the council or Sedaxo.

But Castle View says it is not responsible as the meals contract was awarded to a new contractor.

The announcement to cut hot school meals promoted a series of campaigns and protests by parents.

A spokeswoman for the council said: "The council considers this is a legal dispute between ourselves and Castle View. That is why a decision was taken by members to join with Sedaxo.

"This is a decision which has been taken by committee. It makes sense as we are using the same information to put forward.

"The employment tribunal will decide who is responsible for the costs. It is not automatic that the county council would be funding the costs if Sedaxo lost. It has not be discussed yet."

But a spokesman for Castle View said the three parties should face the hearing separately and, if Sedaxo lost, the county council would be liable as a joint party to pay costs.