Edinburgh council cleaner shortage delays restart of youth work

A SHORTAGE of cleaners is being blamed for a delay in the reopening of council-run youth and community centres in Edinburgh.

Community centres could be allowed to open if they are willing to take responsibility for cleaning and infection control Pic Lisa Ferguson

The city council is currently advertising 52 posts while sickness rates among existing cleaning staff are sky-rocketing, mainly through stress.

Officials said top priority was being given to infection control and cleaning in schools and so there were not enough staff to cover all the other buildings which the council might want to reopen.

But community centres could be allowed to reopen if they are willing to take responsibility themselves for cleaning and infection control and the council is satisfied with their arrangements.

Education vice-convener Alison Dickie said she believed restarting youth work was “absolutely essential” and urged aiming to get it up and running again following next week’s mid-term break.

Last month a lack of services for young people was blamed for violent clashes between teenage factions in Gilmerton and Moredun.

And just over two weeks ago a spate of vandal attacks left Gracemount and St Catherine's Primary schools with no football pitches or outdoor exercise areas.

Cllr Dickie told the education committee: “For me it's absolutely essential to get this up and running - Scottish Government guidance has been extremely clear on this. How are we not seeing it as essential if the national guidance has allowed indoor youth work from August 31? I’m needing more reassurance around how quickly we will be getting youth work up and running from after the October break. It’s such a crucial thing, winter is coming, it is a major issue now that I would like to see it being addressed.”

Peter Watton, the council’s head of property and facilities management, suggested community centres could reopen if management committees accepted responsibility for cleaning their own buildings.

He said in August, cleaning staff had been diverted from closed buildings into schools to provide the level of infection control required for children returning.

"As we open more and more other buildings - libraries, community centres or whatever - I'm having to divert the resource back out of schools and into those buildings and back-filling schools so the risk in terms of infection control manifests itself in the schools."

He said the position he was having to manage was “critical”. “Sickness levels are starting to skyrocket, principally due to stress. We have 52 posts advertised to support the situation we have of increasing sickness. The staff themselves are concerned with infections increasing. For the first time over the weekend, when we had 11 infections in our schools, members of my staff were confirmed as being positive.”

He said any decision about reopening other buildings would have an implication for schools.

“My view on community centres is quite simple: if community centres want to open youth work, we don't have the resources at the moment to support you, let's hear your proposals - if we're happy with it, go ahead.”

Chief education officer Andy Gray said he believed Edinburgh was in line with other Scottish local authorities in resuming youth work.

And officials said third sector youth work organisations funded by the council were working with young people in the city, albeit in a different way from usual.

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