A UNION has described a council as "hypocritical" after deciding to close a staff nursery while entering a national contest to be named a top employer for working families.
A plan to shut the Garshake nursery was included amongst proposed cuts as West Dunbartonshire Council tries to plug a £17 million hole in its finances.
Unison said parents had now received letters that the nursery will now close on July 31 and claimed the 50 families affected have been given "very little time to make other arrangements".
Meanwhile, the council has entered for the Scottish Top Employers for Working Families Award supported by the Scottish Government and Unison, among others.
It has become a finalist in four of the six categories, including The Parenting Across Scotland best for childcare award 2015 and best large public sector employer. It is also shortlisted for the Fathers Network Scotland 'best for all stages of fatherhood' award and the Carers Scotland 'best for carers and eldercare' gong.
The winners are due to be announced on Tuesday by Sarah Jackson, chief executive of the Working Families campaigning charity, and Fiona McLeod MSP, acting minister for children and young people.
Unison said the awards recognised employers who support the work-life balance of all their employees.
A spokesman for Unison described the council as "hypocritical" and added: "The disruption will have a negative impact on the wellbeing of the young people who attend."
Joanne Harkin, Unison convenor in West Dunbartonshire said: "The fact that West Dunbartonshire Council have entered themselves for an award for Top Employers For Working Families, just as they are closing down the staff nursery is farcical. The irony is not lost on Unison members. And we will continue to campaign to keep the nursery open.
"This early closure will only upset and unnerve the young children right at the start of their learning experience. We should be helping to develop their young minds and nurturing them, not overwhelming them with change.
"The parents currently pay for extended hours and have not been offered any alternatives which deliver this vital flexibility. This could potentially result in some of the parents having to reduce their working hours. This is a bad decision by the council and not family friendly."
A West Dunbartonshire Council spokesman said the closure would save local taxpayers £538,000 over the next three years and had been supported in a public consultation.
"This is a disappointing attempt to link the closure with the council's working-families award entry when the facts are that we employ around 6,000 staff and the nursery has places for 44 full-time children," he said.
"The award entry is actually in recognition of the fact that we support the work life-balance of our employees through family-friendly policies and working practices such as flexible time, extended lunch breaks and condensed working hours. These are all practices that Unison has fully supported which makes their new position a surprise."
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