West Dunbartonshire Council has quashed concerns over the future of Alexandria’s One Stop Shop following fears that it was to be shut down and services moved to Clydebank.

The Mitchell Way facility delivers access to council services to the local community, including dealing with housing matters and homelessness, waste management and financial matters, such as payment of council tax, benefits and rent queries.

Fears over the future of the service has led to residents at a recent Bonhill community council meeting expressing their opposition to any plans and calling for locals to attend the office over rumours that numbers using the One Stop Shop were being monitored by council officials.

The campaign has since gathered steam, with an online petition looking to save both the One Stop Shop and Social Work offices in the town gathering 189 signatures at the time of print.

Alexandria resident Jonathan Swanson, 24, is behind the online petition and claims that sources close to staff in the One Stop Shop confirmed plans were in formation to close the service and merge with the Clydebank One Stop Shop.

Talking to the Reporter, Mr Swanson outlined some of the groups he felt were in danger from any potential closure.

He said: “For some of the most deprived people in our community, this could be a hefty blow. 

“The One Stop Shop deals with the homeless and so moving the service might mean that many have to make the choice between the cost of eating and travelling to receive help.”

“It’s also often the first point of contact for the elderly who aren’t involved in modern banking and want to turn up and pay their rent on the day in cash.”

Mr Swanson also said the petition represented an attempt to “build awareness” of planned closure of services in the area.

He continued: “After I found out about the social work office closures online and the removal of services at the Vale of Leven Hospital, I decided to ask around and found out that they’re planning to merge with Clydebank.

“A lot of the councillors around here seem to be unaware of what’s going on and with a local council election coming up, that’s quite disconcerting.

“I’m going to continue to work hard and diligently until we get a public statement on the issue of the One Stop Shop’s future, alongside that of the social work department.”

However, responding to the concerns, a West Dunbartonshire Council spokeswoman completely dismissed the fears over the One Stop Shop’s future.

She said: “This is wrong. The council will continue to provide services from this location in Alexandria.”

West Dunbartonshire Council formally announced plans last month to move social work services out of the area and centralise them in Clydebank.

The removal of the social work offices on Church Street has sparked fears that losure was criticised by Mr Swanson, who raised fears from the social work department’s former manager, James O’Neill, that vulnerable children in Dumbarton and Alexandria could be at risk due to the increased response time for care officers to travel from Clydebank.