by Provost William Hendrie

This month, while we experienced the worst snowfall I can remember, I witnessed great acts of kindness and genuine community spirit in West Dunbartonshire.

The harsh weather brought out the best in residents and made communities come together to ensure vulnerable residents received vital services.

Many of our dedicated Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) staff walked to clients through blizzards to call on the many elderly and infirm residents who rely on their care. Our gritting teams worked tirelessly through the night to ensure our main roads remained open and emergency services had clear access.

Along with our committed staff who continued to work while the area was a whiteout, members of the public also offered their services. Farmers helped gritting teams by ploughing the roads and residents with 4x4 vehicles drove HSCP and nursing staff to and from work. I would also like to thank the many volunteers and parents who helped us by clearing paths and playgrounds at schools. Without our dedicated staff and army of kind volunteers, West Dunbartonshire would have taken far longer to return to normal.

The severe weather will have a lasting effect on our roads network and at the budget setting meeting last week, we agreed to test an environmentally sustainable and potentially more resilient plastic to fill potholes. We also committed £1.56million for our social care services and increased the raising attainment budget by £100k. To help young people find and secure work we have invested £1m for a new apprentice fund, which will offer our children the chance to train with the council and secure a job with us once they qualify. This budget will see investment where it’s needed most and will ensure every resident, whether they’re a school pupil, a young person starting on their career path or an elderly resident needing extra care, will be supported.

I also attended some important civic events last month, such as the raising of the Holocaust memorial flag remembering the millions of people who died in Europe and the LGBT flag raising to promote awareness to ensure everyone is treated with dignity and respect regardless of their sexual orientation.

I attended the church service to remember the many residents who lost their life during the Clydebank Blitz. The annual service is an important part of our town’s history and a fitting tribute to the residents who helped to rebuild the town.