A ROW has broken out between a community group and council bosses amid claims school uniform donations were thrown away. 

Members of Families of Auchinairn Coming Together (FACT) say local authority staff binned the offerings at short notice today, despite pleas from volunteers in recent months to pick up the clothes. 

The group say they were told by council chiefs to clear out the donations in the Auchinairn Community and Early Learning Centre, in Bishopbriggs, by 10am, or face losing them. The donations were due to go to the town's Babes in the Wood centre. 

Volunteers say they have been left "disgusted" by the actions of East Dunbartonshire Council (EDC) staff. 

In a post on social media, a spokesperson from FACT wrote: "I had arranged to work with Babes in the Wood and donate all uniforms this term as the centre will probably not be opening up until the schools go back.

"To my disgust, EDC have gone into the centre this morning, bagged all the uniforms which have been in the centre for months and binned the lot.

"I am totally lost for words. EDC are disgusting to do this to a community. This is a time of need and we are in recovery from a pandemic where everyone has suffered and still suffering."

Volunteers claim they were told by EDC in recent months to not go to the centre due to the pandemic. 

The statement continued: "EDC could not wait till Monday when it had all been arranged to be uplifted.

"I had been asking time and time again if I could pop into the centre to sort out and move elsewhere, to be told no one is allowed in the building at any time.

"Now when it suits EDC I was demanded to go in and remove everything out the centre by 10am Friday? But I wasn’t meant to be in the building? I had arranged in my own time the uniforms to be picked up on Monday and work with another local shop therefore these uniform donations would go to good use in our community." 

Ann Davie, depute chief executive, education, people and business at EDC, said the clothes had not been thrown in the bin by workers.

She said: "Due to the current coronavirus pandemic, Auchinairn Community Centre is closed and is only open for essential childcare for the children of keyworkers.

"A number of donations had been left in bin bags at the main entrance to the centre and FACT were asked to uplift them or we would have no option but to remove them due to current health and safety guidance.

"As the bags were not collected, we have placed them in off-site storage. No other equipment or materials owned by FACT have been removed from the centre. We are more than happy to drop the bags off at the Babes in the Wood facility and will make arrangements to do so on Monday."