Community Service at work in Lochaber

Offenders, subject to a community service order in the Fort William area, are playing their part in the winter clear up.

Four young men, who are being supervised by the Criminal Justice Service within The Highland Council’s Social Work Service, have been clearing snow and ice from pavements and footpaths around the local community centre where elderly people attend for lunches, housing association sheltered housing units and shopping areas.

The Council’s Community Service Officer David MacKay explained: “We try to find offenders unpaid work within the community which benefits society. With the recent snow we approached the Council’s TEC Services to offer some help in pavement clearing around elderly and vulnerable peoples’ homes which would help them get out and about. TEC Services have supplied us with some grit to carry out the work and they are doing a great job.”

Leader of The Highland Council’s Administration, Councillor Michael Foxley said: “This is a great support to our more elderly people in Fort William who can often be concerned about leaving the house when it is snowy and icy underfoot. I commend the Criminal Justice Service for their lateral thinking and for the hard work that is being undertaken. I am sure that this will make a huge difference for many people in the area in keeping them mobile and allowing them to go about their daily business.

“The Council’s gritting service is doing an excellent job at keeping all the main routes open but in these extreme weather conditions they have to keep re-gritting the priority 1 and 2 roads. They are currently working on the priority 3 and 4 routes. Any help like this from the Criminal Justice Service is welcomed. I would urge people to watch out for elderly and vulnerable members of the community – help them with snow clearing and not to assume that someone else will look out for them.”

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