Row over cash allocation from funds leftover from defunct town centre organisation

Cumbernauld organisations were invited to apply for up to £50,000 worth of funding each and 42 did just that.

Now it has emerged that a total of just nine good causes have been successful, including Cumbernauld Action Care For The Elderly, Cumbernauld Poverty Action, The Craighalbert Centre and the YMCA.

However, the Cumbernauld News has learned that Cumbernauld Community Forum is dissatisfied with the way that the grants had been dished out and has written to members members of the North Lanarkshire Council-based board that was responsible for making the choices.

Mr Lees believes that most beneficiaries are deserving but has expressed his misgivings with other aspects of the rollout – chiefly that Kildrum Primary School PTA were given the top award of £50,000.

Mr Lees said he was particularly aggrieved to see Cumbernauld Resilience and St Lucy’s Youth Zone and his own Westfield Pensioners group being turned down for cash but that that was just for starters.

He said: “I am disgusted by the fact that just nine groups got funding when 43 applied. I cannot understand how they vetted these applicants – one in particular a parent teachers council.

"How is that a fair assessment of allocating funds to the groups that have done so much for the community over an 18-month lockdown and many years previously?”

His colleague John King believes that bigger groups have been given the lion’s share while grassroots concerns have been ignored. He added “This whole process with the panel is unjust and unfair.”

A council spokesperson would not be drawn on the PTA issue and added: “An application form and guidance was issued to community groups. All applications have been assessed in line with the guidance and criteria provided, and decisions are due to be considered by the Community Empowerment Committee on August 23.

"It would not be appropriate to discuss individual applications, but feedback will be provided to all unsuccessful applicants.”