HUNDREDS of elderly and vulnerable people will no longer receive grass cutting services as part of a string of council cutbacks in the suburbs of Glasgow.

East Renfrewshire Council, which covers areas such a Newton Mearns and Giffnock, have told residents in their 80's they should "phone a friend" to help with tending to their gardens.

Despite having the highest council tax collection rates in Scotland (98 per cent), the move is part of the authority's drive to save £20 million to help bridge a budget shortfall.

More than 700 elderly people will now have to plead for gardening help from elsewhere from next spring.

A letter issued to the residents states: "You may already be aware that the Garden Assistance Scheme and Mr Diggit services will no longer be provided by the council.

"The recent grass cuts – the final cuts of the year – will be the last carried out for local residents under the Garden Assistance Scheme.

"I wanted to make sure you were aware of this now to allow you to make other arrangements for next spring.

"You may wish to discuss garden maintenance with family or friends as there is often help available."

However, one pensioner said it would cause problems as she has no-one to ask for help.

The 84-year-old said: "Who am I going to call? All my friends are in their 80’s as well."

The council announced last year it is to cut 200 posts over three years to help bridge the shortfall but said it aims to manage the reduction through natural turnover, voluntary redundancy and redeployments.

Officials hope around £10.3m can be saved without impacting on frontline services through changes to council systems and processes.

A consultation was launched last November to allow local people to have their say on the plans.

A spokeswoman for the council said: "Following public consultation in November 2014, a decision was taken to remove the Garden Assistance Scheme and Mr Diggit with effect from March 2016. This will save the council nearly £165,000.

"It is one of a number of tough choices the council has had to take, as it requires to find savings of around £20 million over the next three years.

"It was a difficult decision to remove the Garden Assistance Scheme and Mr Diggit Scheme and it was not taken lightly."