Cllr Jim Bollan submitted the draft to the local SNP group last Friday in hope members will raise the motion as an emergency at Wednesday’s meeting in the local authority’s Garshake chambers.

Cllr Bollan, of the Scottish Socialist Party, is hopeful nationalists will back his motion and can win the majority to ‘save’ Nkosana Mdikane’s high fives.

Mr Mdikane, the 74 year-old crossing patroller for Aitkenbar and St Peter’s Primary, was told two weeks ago he could no longer high five children crossing the road at Whiteford Avenue due to health and safety concerns.

Cllr Bollan’s draft motion reads: “Given the substantial number of parent’s and carers that continue to be supportive of the current school crossing patrol service at Aitkenbar Primary School in Bellsmyre along with 14,864 members of the public who support the retention coupled with a public petition with thousands of signatures already submitted to WDC, committee agrees to reverse the decision taken by officers to instruct the current operative to refuse children a high five when they request it. Committee agrees given this is a non-statutory service with guidelines that leave wide discretion with the council to introduce some common sense to the situation and support parents, none of whom would intentionally allow their children to participate in an unsafe practice.” Cllr Bollan told the Reporter: “I’m hoping the SNP will raise it at the meeting, it will have to be raised as an emergency as it hasn’t been submitted yet. Jonathan McColl (SNP leader) has told me that they have discussed it, so I hope now that they’ll support it. Jonathan has indicated to me that he thinks that he can get the SNP group to accept it, after they discuss it. They submit it to the chair as an emergency motion.” As the Reporter went to press SNP Councillor Jim Finn said: “We will discuss this at our meeting today (Monday) and I won’t be able to make a comment until after we’ve discussed it as a group.” A council spokeswoman previously told the Reporter: “All patrollers are instructed when crossing children over a road to remain static with one hand on their stick and the other stretched outwards. This ensures that they can be seen and effectively provides a barrier between school pupils and the traffic.” Mr Mdikane told parents from the school that he had a meeting with his superiors at West Dunbartonshire Council last week. Sources have told the Reporter he was told to attend the meeting at Garshake along with a union representative. David Dufton, who started the Save the High Fives campaign, had also heard about the meeting: “It was on the grapevine at the school, I tried finding out about it but they’ve closed ranks.” When the Reporter asked the council about the meeting it said it ‘does not comment on individual cases’.

Mr Mdikane was not at his usual post late last week, and has told parents he has been feeling unwell and will be off sick.