Renfrewshire Labour’s Councillor Chris Gilmour and MSP Neil Bibby have urged Renfrewshire Council to “get the basics right” and ensure the Wardens Service tackles antisocial behaviour in the evenings.
The service currently operates until 7 pm each day, and the pair are concerned it prioritises parking fines to boost council revenue over prevention and community safety, neglecting offences such as dog fouling, littering and fly-tipping.
After hearing residents’ concerns about antisocial behaviour, Bibby and Gilmour say evening patrols should be extended and the service restored to its original purpose. Introduced by a former Labour administration, the Wardens Service was designed to deter antisocial behaviour and gather intelligence for local police.
Renfrewshire Council – now reviewing the service’s workforce structure – has rejected these criticisms. Council leader Iain Nicolson stated that wardens will carry out targeted nighttime visits in areas with repeated complaints, and he noted no Labour councillors have raised concerns about the review at recent meetings.
“People want to see the Wardens Service working for them, not just for the council,” said Cllr Chris Gilmour, Labour’s environmental services spokesperson.
“There has been too much focus under this SNP administration on issuing parking fines and not enough on getting the basics right – deterring antisocial behaviour and tackling issues such as dog fouling and fly-tipping.
“The Wardens Service is an important resource but the balance currently isn’t anywhere near right. We know a lot of this antisocial behaviour happens at night, so we need evening patrols brought back.”
Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, added: “We have a Wardens Service but it needs to work for the community as opposed to just making the SNP Council money. This is not a reflection on the Wardens themselves but what they’re being asked to do by SNP Councillors.
“If there is antisocial behaviour happening in the evenings – which is there locally – then we need the Wardens Service operating in the evenings as they used to do. They can provide valuable support for the police and I know local officers would welcome such a move.
“I know from speaking with local people that there are concerns about the state of our streets with dog fouling, littering and fly-tipping – so clearly we also need a more pro-active approach from the Council to deal with these issues.
“The service therefore also needs to be seen across the area, not just in Paisley town centre issuing parking fines.”
Council leader Iain Nicolson responded: “We continue to shape and model our services to meet the changing demands from residents and partner agencies.
“The Wardens provision is currently under review and a new model is expected to be in place in the coming months and will provide an out-of-hours standby service.
“Where there are repeated complaints about specific areas, Wardens will continue to carry out specific night time visits as required. This issue has been discussed on numerous occasions and it appears no Labour councillors have raised any issues about the warden service review at recent council meetings.”
Cllr Nicolson added: “This SNP administration takes its responsibilities seriously with increased funding for street cleaning and for tackling anti-social behaviour. Our warden service is not the Police service it’s a community support service.
“If Labour MSPs believe we need more Policing, then they should spend time arguing for that rather than just running down all the good work that goes on by local residents and our wardens for our local communities, Renfrewshire is a great place to stay, that’s why our population is rising with people wanting to move here to live and work”