The cash-strapped local authority walked away from an agreement with a private landlord to use a site in Boden Street earlier this year, sparking fury among service bosses who labelled the decision ‘completely shambolic’.

The facility, which allowed people to carry out light duties as an alternative to prison, was previously hailed by ministers as the ideal template for similar community justice initiatives all around Scotland.

Data shared by GMB exclusively with the Glasgow Times reveals that the local authority has now agreed to pay the landlord £230,000 to restore the building to its original state. The figures also claim that since May 1 to August 14, 2,555 hours of light duties have lapsed as a result of letting the centre shut its doors.

Glasgow City Council has a legal obligation to hand back the building in the same pristine condition as when it moved the project in during 2015.

Ross McArthur, a senior GMB Scotland rep, is now urging council bosses to work towards reopening the centre rather than fork out the eye-watering dilapidation charge.

Ross McArthur(Image: Gordon Terris)

He said: “The council could have worked to extend the lease with the landlord, and they had plenty of notice to do so. However, they chose to walk away without any proper contingency plans in place, and this is the result of that.

“It was a rushed decision that blindsided staff and left those needing to complete community payback orders in limbo. Now five months on, we are no further forward to finding a proper solution and the council is having to stump out almost £230,000 to fix the building up.

“It was a model project that won widespread praise, the council should never have allowed the lease to lapse in the first place. The way this has been handled has been reckless and totally shambolic.”

READ MORE: Criminals unable to carry out CPOs after Glasgow centre closure

Mr McArthur says the saga has also had consequences for those who used the centre.

He added: “It makes it difficult for court-imposed orders to be carried out locally and that is a slap in the face to the victims of crime and the people trying to pay their debt to society by completing them.”

We previously told how landlords said when the lease ended on May 5, they found the building filled with equipment with floors and walls damaged. They also described how machinery had been bolted to floors and the whole premises needed a deep clean.

A spokesperson for the landlord said: “We want to make it clear that we did not terminate the lease. The council was a good tenant for the 10 years they were in the building, and we would have been happy to have them here for longer.”

Mr McArthur said: “How can it make sense to hand over £230,000 to restore this site when they could just do a deal and open it up again?

“All of our machinery is still in there, it would be a case of plugging in and getting going again, simple as that.”

Council bosses said that no hours had been lost on community payback orders as a result of the decision to leave.

A spokeswoman for Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership said: “Contingency arrangements were put in place prior to the closure of Boden Street to facilitate placements for the affected service users. We don’t lose the hours, and it would not be correct say that hours are lost.  There may be a delay while alternative placements are confirmed, however no hours are lost.”