The theft occurred sometime between Friday, July 10 and Monday, July 13 from a storage container on the grounds of the centre.

West Dunbartonshire Council has confirmed five bikes were stolen and they are estimated to be worth less than £500 in total. Despite having security measure in place, the council has taken additional security steps at the site.

Following the theft, campaigners from Save Ardlui Outdoor Centre wrote online: “Is this the first mass theft from the Ardlui Outdoor Centre that Education at WDC was warned about?” Jim Bollan, socialist councillor for Lomond, told the Reporter: “As usual, in their haste to close another public service the Red Tories would haven given no thought about the security on the site.

“It would appear there were no effective security measures put in place by the council which does not surprise me, as there is very little joined up thinking or planning takes place in their rush to get rid of workers and services.” In response, the council insists it has security measures in place.

A spokeswoman said: “West Dunbartonshire Council would join police in appealing for any information that would help identify the thieves who stole a number of bikes from a padlocked storage container at the Ardlui site.

“The council has security measures in place at this location and we have taken the additional step of removing all containers from the site.” The controversial closure of the centre was one of the budget cuts made by the council’s Labour administration as part of £17 million of efficiency savings and is estimated to save £110,000 a year. The centre provided outdoor activities such as mountain biking, abseiling and canoeing to P6 and P7 pupils in West Dunbartonshire and was also used by local secondary schools.

Campaigners Save Ardlui Outdoor Centre fought to no avail to keep the centre in operation, and handed in a petition with more than 1,000 signatures in a bid to save the centre.

The council is now marketing the remainder of the lease for Ardlui to public and private sector organisations but cannot confirm any bids to date. In the administration’s motion to move ahead with the closure, Councillor Michelle McGinty, spokeswoman for Educational Services, said branded the facility 'a drain on taxpayers money’.

She said: “This lease in now in its sixth year with losses in excess of £1.5 million and another 20 years to go. The cost of running the centre can only increase and the income generation is simply not hitting its targets.” This week, a spokeswoman for West Dunbartonshire Council told the Reporter: “The lease for Ardlui is being marketed and we await the outcome of that process. As we have repeatedly stated, irrespective of the centre’s future use, pupils in West Dunbartonshire will continue to receive high-quality outdoor learning.” She added it was up to individual teachers and schools to arrange this.

The spokeswoman said: “As has always been the case, it is our head teachers who will continue to select the experience best suited to their pupils.” Speaking about the former Ardlui staff, the council added: “We employed four permanent and two temporary staff at Ardlui. Four staff were successfully redeployed within the council and two other staff opted for voluntary redundancy/early retirement.” Police Scotland is appealing for information in relation to the theft.

Anyone who may have seen a suspicious vehicle in the area, or anyone who may have been offered a bike in suspicious circumstances, is to contact officers on 101.