Councils slated over failing autism service

Councillor demands why no lifeline for One Stop Shop

A Wishaw councillor this week hit out at North Lanarkshire Council over their failure to save a lifeline autism support hub from the axe.

North and South Lanarkshire Council decided not to fork out £75,000 each to fund the Motherwellbased One Stop Shop for Autism (OSSA) for another year after the Scottish Government ceased their funding.

The One Stop Shop (OSSA) closed their doors last Friday despite fierce protests from concerned parents and calls from dismayed councillors, MPs and MSPs to provide funding to keep it open.

Councillor Rosa Zambonini said: ”I am deeply disappointed that both councils could not come to an agreement to fund the OSSA.

“While I welcome any consultation on an improved autism service, the parents and users have expressed to me that the best resolution to their needs would have been to keep the OSSA open.

“Why tear a house down to find a way to build it back up?

“The parents and activists have been extremely committed and I cannot commend them highly enough.

“I proposed a special meeting of the council but this was sadly, and in my opinion, wrongly denied.

“The whole handling of this issue has been disgraceful.’

SNP councillors backed the campaign to retain OSSA.

The facility was used by about 1500 parents and children across the county including families from Wishaw, Newmains Shotts and Motherwell.

Councillor David Stocks, North Lanarkshre SNP Group Leader, said: “These one-stop shops were set up by the Scottish Government with three years of funding and have proven invaluable to the families.

“North Lanarkshire Council proposed to support autism through Hope, but it provides a different set of services.

“Seven other councils decided to maintain support for One Stop Shops.

“North Lanarkshire have to accept a mistake has been made and end a situation where this family support centre has closed.”

Archie Aitken, the council’s head of business for legal and democratic solutions, said: “It is for the provost, as chairman, to determine the business to be conducted at council meetings.

“The request for a special meeting was refused as the council no longer has the authority to provide funding to the service.

“This has now been delegated to the Health and Social Care North Lanarkshire Joint Integrated Board.”