Concerns raised as valuable building materials left at West Dunbartonshire depot for over a year

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Concerns have been raised after £250,000 of building materials were left unsecured at a Dumbarton council depot for over a YEAR.Councillors said they were “alarmed” and “astonished” after it was revealed UPVC windows and doors and timber roof battens were stored in an open area at sites along Elm Road for more than 12 months and not adequately protected from theft or damage.West Dunbartonshire Council has said that Covid-19 restrictions were the reason for the situation, with the materials meant to be sent directly to properties for work during lockdown.Raising her concerns at an audit committee last week, Dumbarton councillor Karen Conaghan of the SNP, said: “I found it quite alarming that something like this had gone on for so long.“I’m wondering how many years these had been accumulated over and what sort of value there is on these 166 units?“Moreso what is going to happen to them?

Are they now redundant and scrap or is there anything that can be saved out of them.“I’m also interested in the action plan to ensure that this doesn’t happen again.

It’s quite concerning that it could go on for such a lengthy period without us knowing about it.“Where was the failure that allowed that to happen?”In response, Andi Priestman, WDC’s shared service manager for audit and fraud, said: “The majority of the stock was built up as a result of Covid-19.

The team were continuing to purchase replacement windows as a result of their ongoing maintenance programme.“However, due to Covid, we were prevented from being able to go and fit those.