Aberdeenshire Council has dismissed allegations its mental health service was excluding people who needed it.
The authority issued the rebuttal after members of the former Arches group in Banff revealed they felt as if they had been “forgotten about” by the council.
The support group, which provided access to professional staff through Mental Health Aberdeen, used to meet regularly at the town’s community centre, but has since folded.
The closure was a result of the local authority’s shake-up of mental health provision, which has involved a move from centre-based help to targeted support for those in greatest need.
Council officials argued nobody would lose out when the Scottish Association for Mental Health took over from Mental Health Aberdeen – who did not submit a bid to renew its contract amid concerns about the proposals.
And council co-leader Richard Thomson has branded claims former users of the service have been “forgotten about” as “simply not true”.
He added that anyone who had not already registered with SAMH should contact the council’s community mental health team.
He said: “We, of course, acknowledge that some existing service users remain anxious about the change of provider and new model of delivery.
“But there are many advantages to the new services which will be more personalised, more recovery focused, better linked to employability, accessible seven days a week, and available across Aberdeenshire as a whole.”
Anne Allan, chairwoman of the council’s communities committee, added: “A buildingsbased service restricts the number of people who can access it. If people cannot attend the building at the time it is open, they are excluded from the service.”
Members of the Arches, who have formed their own support group, claimed they had been “robbed” by the council.
The group once had about 60 members who attended for help and support, but now only about 12 of those keep in contact with each other.
Local MSP Peter Chapman described the situation as “completely unacceptable”.
He added: “I would respectfully suggest Aberdeenshire Council speaks to the volunteers and former service users I have spoken to.
“At the moment, they do feel abandoned and feel that no-one is listening to them.”
