Approved Minutes of Meeting
West Dunbartonshire Council · 25 March 2026
Back to West Dunbartonshire Council — 25 March 2026 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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WEST DUNBARTONSHIRE COUNCIL At a Hybrid Meeting of West Dunbartonshire Council held in the Civic Space, 16 Church Street, Dumbarton on Wednesday, 25 March 2026 at 4.04 p.m. Present: Provost Karen Murray Conaghan, and Councillors Jim Bollan, Ian Dickson, Fiona Hennebry, Gurpreet Singh Johal, Daniel Lennie, David McBride, Jonathan McColl, Michelle McGinty, June McKay, John Millar, Lawrence O’Neill, Chris Pollock, Martin Rooney, William Rooney, Gordon Scanlan, Hazel Sorrell, Clare Steel and Sophie Traynor. Attending: Peter Hessett, Chief Executive; Laurence Slavin, Chief Officer – Resources, and Section 95 Officer; Alan Douglas, Chief Officer – Regulatory and Regeneration (Legal Officer); Victoria Rogers, Chief Officer – People and Technology; Peter Barry, Chief Officer – Housing Services; Gail Macfarlane, Chief Officer – Roads and Neighbourhood; Gillian Hamilton, Chief Officer – Education; Beth Culshaw, Chief Officer – West Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP); Michelle Lynn, Asset Manager; Ryan Chalmers, Section Head – Resources; Graeme Forrester, Manager of Democratic and Registration Services; and Carol-Ann Burns, Senior Democratic Services Officer. Apologies: Apologies for absence were intimated on behalf of Councillors Kevin Crawford, Diane Docherty and Lauren Oxley. Provost Karen Murray Conaghan in the Chair STATEMENT BY CHAIR – AUDIO STREAMING Provost Murray Conaghan advised that the meeting was being audio streamed and broadcast live to the internet and would be available for playback. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST It was noted that there were no declarations of interest in any of the items of business on the agenda.
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RECORDING OF VOTES The Council agreed that all votes taken during the meeting would be carried out by roll call vote to ensure an accurate record. OPEN FORUM The Committee noted that no open forum questions had been submitted by members of the public. MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS The Minutes of Meetings of West Dunbartonshire Council held on 17 December 2025 (Special), 17 December 2025 (Ordinary), 11 February 2026 (Requisitioned) and 4 March 2026 (Budget) were submitted and approved as correct records. MINUTES OF MEETING OF AUDIT COMMITTEE The Minutes of Meeting of the Audit Committee held on 10 December 2025 were submitted and noted and all decisions contained therein were approved. VARIATION IN ORDER OF BUSINESS After hearing Provost Murray Conaghan, the Council agreed to vary the order of business as hereinafter minuted. NOTICE OF MOTIONS (a) Motion by Councillor Jim Bollan – Health & Social Care Partnership Service Redesign Councillor Bollan moved:- In view of 96% of GMB carers recently balloted on the so-called “redesign” of their service agreeing to take action, including strike action, to defend the quality of services for their service users and to ensure those in detriment are dealt with as a priority, Council requests in the strongest possible terms that the H&SCP immediately suspend the implementation of the redesign and engage urgently with the Unions to try and avoid a damaging strike in this vital care sector. As an amendment, Councillor McBride moved:-
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Council notes that the motion passed at the requisitioned meeting on 11 February 2026 has since been considered by the HSCP Joint Board members, and that they have agreed to continue with the implementation timetable previously approved in September 2023, which is being introduced in three phases: Phase 1: December 2024 Phase 2: March 2025 Phase 3: March 2026 Council recognises that decisions relating to the redesign can only be altered by the Integration Joint Board (IJB), not WDC. Council also notes that the Council Administration comprises a minority of 8 councillors out of a total of 22 elected members. The 14 non-Labour councillors collectively hold a majority and therefore have the ability, at any Council meeting, to take overall control of the Council should they choose to do so. This would enable them to implement their own revised policies at Council Committees and to change the Council-appointed voting members on the IJB, should that be their preferred direction, if they are serious about overturning the IJB decision. Until then, Council therefore agrees to take no further action. Councillor Lennie then seconded the motion and Councillor McGinty seconded the amendment. On a roll call vote being taken between the amendment (Councillor McBride) and the motion (Councillor Bollan), 8 Members voted for the amendment, namely Councillors Singh Johal, McBride, McGinty, Millar, O’Neill, Martin Rooney, William Rooney and Sorrell, and 11 Members voted for the motion, namely Provost Murray Conaghan and Councillors Bollan, Dickson, Hennebry, Lennie, McColl, McKay, Pollock, Scanlan, Steel and Traynor. The motion was accordingly declared carried. (b) Motion by Councillor Martin Rooney – West Dunbartonshire Council Welcomes the UK Government Announcement of an Additional £921m of Funding to the Scottish Government Councillor Martin Rooney moved:- This Council welcomes the Spring Statement, delivered by the Chancellor on 3rd March, which announced an additional £921m of Barnet Consequentials for the Scottish Government.
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The consequentials include Transport, Business Rate Relief, and Special Educational Needs and Disability. The additional funding is split as follows: £900m resource and £21m capital The funding will be phased over the three years 2026/27, 2027/28 and 2028/29. Transport: The Transport element comprises £21m in capital funding linked to the rail fares freeze in London. This provides £7m a year for the three-year period. Business Rates: The additional business rate relief element is for pubs and comprises of £40.4m of resource funding as follows: 2026/27 £8.8m 2027/28 £13.3m 2028/29 £18.3m Special Educational Needs and Disability Provision: The additional funding provides £533m of resource for special educational needs spending in 2026/27. In addition, the Scottish Government will receive a further £326.5m of revenue in 2028/29, which is expected to be recurring for Special Educational Needs and Disability. Council recognises that there is a risk that the Scottish Government is unlikely to pass the funding to local government to support education and additional support needs. Council notes that if the £533m of special educational needs spending was allocated across all 32 Scottish councils based on the normal distribution WDC would get 1.8% which would be £9.59m. West Dunbartonshire Council calls on the next Scottish Government to prioritise the £533m of funding for local government in Scotland, to support local services such as education and special educational needs. The Council also calls on the next Scottish Government to prioritise the additional £326.5m of revenue that becomes available in 2028/29 should also be prioritised for local government in Scotland to help councils to support local services. Based on a share of 1.8% this would mean an uplift of £5.877m of recurring revenue for local services.
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Council requests that the Chief Executive writes to the Scottish Government and to the other 31 councils in Scotland, requesting that they consider supporting a similar motion at their next council meeting. As an amendment, Councillor Scanlan moved:- Council welcomes all new funding from both UK and Scottish Governments. Additionally, Council agrees that members should refrain from asking the Chief Executive and other officers to intimate our agreed motions to other Councils, as this is a waste of Council resources. Members have their own political networks should they wish to share party political broadcasts through motions which they have moved. Councillor McBride then seconded the motion and Councillor Traynor seconded the amendment. On a roll call vote being taken between the amendment (Councillor Scanlan) and the motion (Councillor Martin Rooney), 11 Members voted for the amendment, namely Provost Murray Conaghan and Councillors Bollan, Dickson, Hennebry, Lennie, McColl, McKay, Pollock, Scanlan, Steel and Traynor, and 8 Members voted for the motion, namely Councillors Singh Johal, McBride, McGinty, Millar, O’Neill, Martin Rooney, William Rooney and Sorrell. The amendment was accordingly declared carried. NON-DOMESTIC RATES HARDSHIP APPLICATION A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources requesting consideration of a non-domestic rates hardship application. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer in further explanation and in answer to a Member’s question, Councillor Pollock moved:- That the Council agrees:- (1) to confirm the Chief Officer – Resources’ recommendation to not award hardship relief; and (2) that authority be delegated to the Chief Officer – Resources to determine any future applications for Discretionary Relief from Non- Domestic Rates. As an amendment, Councillor Bollan moved:- That the Council agrees the small amount of money requested to help progress this idea [a non-medication approach to tackling diabetes based on diet and a healthy lifestyle], subject to the applicants agreeing a timetable for the completion of all necessary repairs to Dalmoak Castle.
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Councillor Traynor then seconded Councillor Pollock’s motion and Councillor McColl seconded Councillor Bollan’s amendment. On a roll call vote being taken between the amendment (Councillor Bollan) and the motion (Councillor Pollock), 6 Members voted for the amendment, namely Councillors Bollan, Hennebry, Lennie, McColl, McKay and Steel, and 13 Members voted for the motion, namely Provost Murray Conaghan and Councillors Dickson, Singh Johal, McBride, McGinty, Millar, O’Neill, Pollock, Martin Rooney, William Rooney, Scanlan, Sorrell and Traynor. The motion was accordingly declared carried. TREASURY MANAGEMENT STRATEGY AND ANNUAL INVESTMENT STRATEGY A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources seeking approval of the proposed Treasury Management Strategy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy, and the indicators contained within. Th Council agreed:- (1) to approve the proposed Treasury Management Strategy Statement and Annual Investment Strategy and the indicators contained within; (2) to approve the continued use of the asset life method (using either annuity or equal instalment) for the repayment of loan fund advances with the exception of spend to save schemes where the funding/income profile method could be used; (3) to approve the ability to continue to use countries with a sovereign rating of AA- and above; (4) to note the removal of Lender Option Borrowing Option as an approved source of borrowing; and (5) to note the report would be referred to the Audit Committee for further scrutiny. GENERAL SERVICES REVENUE BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 31 JANUARY 2026 (PERIOD 10) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources advising of the 2025/26 Revenue Budget position at 31 January 2026 and the forecast position of the General Fund Reserve as at 31 March 2026. The Council agreed:-
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(1) to note the overall favourable variance (underspend) on the General Fund Revenue Budget of £3.146m, an improvement in forecast of £0.091m since last reported (£3.055m); (2) to note a projected adverse variance (overspend) on the General Services Delivery Budget of £0.311m (0.10% of total budget), an improvement in forecast of £0.124m since last reported (£0.435m); and (3) to note a projected in-year use of earmarked reserves of £2.601m, offset by a transfer in of £6.996m and a transfer from unearmarked reserves of £0.858m thus increasing the overall forecast earmarked balance to £14.196m. GENERAL SERVICES CAPITAL BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT 2025/26 TO 31 JANUARY 2026 (PERIOD 10) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources providing an update on the General Services capital financial performance to 31 January 2026. It was noted that an addendum to the report by the Chief Officer – Roads and Neighbourhood had been provided to Members in advance of the meeting and that this provided an update on the increase of construction costs since December 2025 to deliver the Gruggies Burn Flood Alleviation Scheme and souught approval to finalise and sign the construction contract to deliver Option 1 – Full Scheme Delivery. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Roads and Neighbourhood and the Chief Officer – Regulatory and Regeneration in further explanation and in answer to a Member’s question, the Council agreed:- (1) to note the current position of the 2025/26 General Services capital budget; (2) to approve the revised completion dates in respect of 9 projects detailed in Appendix 2 to the report (paragraph 4.4); (3) to note the reprofiling of 18 projects in Appendix 3 to the report (of £8.178m) over the project life; (4) to note that, following receipt of all project costs, the construction cost for the Gruggies Burn Flood Alleviation Scheme had increased by £3.46m since Council approval in December 2025 which increases the Council’s capital contribution by £0.692m with an annual revenue implication of £0.032m; (5) to approve that the capital plan budget details for RN11 Gruggies Burn Flood Alleviation Scheme be updated to reflect the increase in capital costs to construct Option 1 – Full Scheme Delivery; and (6) to authorise the Chief Officer – Regulatory and Regeneration to conclude negotiations in relation to the finalisation and signing of the construction contract to deliver Option 1 - Full Scheme Delivery.
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HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 31 JANUARY 2026 (PERIOD 10) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources advising of the 2025/2026 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) revenue budget position on 31 January 2026 and the forecast position of the HRA reserves as at 31 March 2026. The Council agreed:- (1) to note the HRA was forecasting a 2025/26 surplus of £1.079m, a projected favourable variance (underspend) of £1.044m; and (2) to note the forecast 31 March 2026 HRA reserve position of £1.690m which was £0.530m above the HRA prudential target of £1.160m. HOUSING REVENUE ACCOUNT (HRA) CAPITAL BUDGETARY CONTROL REPORT TO 31 JANUARY 2026 (PERIOD 10) A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources providing an update on the HRA capital programme to 31 January 2026. After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer – Housing Services and the Chief Officer – Resources in answer to Members’ questions, the Council agreed:- (1) to note the position of the 2025/26 HRA capital budget and the HRA capital plan on 31 January 2026; (2) to note project life performance is monitored against a £345.311m project life expenditure estimate, an £80.378m project life income estimate and a £264.933m five-year borrowing requirement; (3) to note that eleven projects were forecast to deliver a total underspend of £9.249m against their five-year project life budgets; (4) to note in-year financial performance is monitored against a 2025/26 capital expenditure budget of £55.547m, 2025/26 capital income budget of £6.290m and a one-year borrowing requirement of £49.257m; and (5) to note there was an anticipated underspend of £10.477m against 2025/26 budgets reducing the forecast one-year borrowing requirement to £38.780m. CRESCENT COURT LIFT – INFORMATION AND TIMELINE A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Housing Services providing information on the events, timeline, challenges and learning in relation to the breakdown of the Crescent Court lift.
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After discussion and having heard the Chief Officer in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Council agreed to note the content of the report. COUNCIL RESPONSE TO THE FUTURE OF COUNCIL TAX IN SCOTLAND CONSULTATION A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources providing the Council’s response to the Scottish Government’s consultation on the Future of Council Tax in Scotland. The Council agreed to note the content of the report and the consultation response at Appendix 1 to the report. ACQUISITION OF FORMER CARE HOME KNOWN AS FRANK DOWNIE HOUSE, OTTAWA CRESCENT, CLYDEBANK A report was submitted by the Chief Officer – Resources providing an update on the discussions with CCG (Scotland) Ltd regarding the acquisition of the former care home site at Frank Downie House, Ottawa Crescent, Clydebank, outlining the position reached through partnership discussions and seeking approval to proceed with site acquisition. Following discussion and having heard the Asset Manager, the Chief Officer – Housing Services, and the Chief Officer – Resources, in further explanation and in answer to Members’ questions, the Council agreed:- (1) to approve the acquisition of the former Frank Downie House site at Ottawa Crescent, Clydebank, from CCG (Scotland) Ltd for a consideration of £379,000, representing the land cost incurred by CCG with no profit applied; (2) to note that the Scottish Government has committed £379,000 in grant funding to fully cover the land acquisition costs; (3) to authorise the Chief Officer – Resources to conclude negotiations; and (4) to authorise the Chief Officer – Regulatory and Regeneration to conclude the transaction on such conditions as considered appropriate. DATE OF NEXT MEETING Members noted that the next ordinary meeting of West Dunbartonshire Council was scheduled to be held on Wednesday, 29 April 2026 at 4.00 p.m. The meeting closed at 6.17 p.m.