WHITEHILL Town Council has criticised Job Centre Plus for its failure to alleviate problems with its Bordon branch and has vowed to take the matter further. Members were informed on Monday that a meeting between a representative from the Job Centre, the CAB and the council had taken place but nothing had been resolved. The town council has now decided to write to local MP James Arbuthnot to raise the matter in Parliament. The Herald reported earlier this month how Job Centre Plus in Chalet Hill stopped giving new claimants the chance to have their first interviews at the branch. Now Bordon residents hoping to sign on for the first time must make a difficult journey, when using public transport, to Petersfield or Alton. "We had the meeting and the senior business manager from Job Centre Plus said that he would write us and the CAB, but we still have not received any letter and when I tried to contact them today (Monday), no-one was available," a council spokesman explained. The discussion left the CAB and council members frustrated. Whitehill Town Council's Colin Hayden added: "Although they seemed open in meeting, they did not answer any of our questions satisfactorily and all we seemed to get was a lot of figures, which I didn't really understand." Don Mayes was unanimously backed by council members when he called for action. "There is a continued dissatisfaction with the service that Whitehill and Bordon are receiving. Perhaps the Rt Hon James Arbuthnot should be informed and the Secretary of State should be asked why we are suffering," said Mr Mayes. Job Centre Plus said that it was getting more claims at Alton and Petersfield and, due to financial constraints, believed it would be beneficial only to open three days a week with the reduced services. Figures indicate that first claim interviews were moved to Alton and Petersfield because those branches were used more regularly than Bordon. On average 22 people begin the claims process at Petersfield each week, 19 at Alton and 11 in Bordon. But councillors were annoyed with this and pointed out that not only do Petersfield and Alton branches open an extra two days, but they were also open at lunch time, unlike their Bordon counterpart. Members felt that limited service was unacceptable, as was the fact that their questions had not been suitably answered. "We questioned them and questioned them, but we didn't get to the bottom of it and we really need to. It needs to be taken further. Whitehill and Bordon have the clientele least equipped to get around with no adequate bus service. It is totally unfair," one council member said. According to the Job Centre Plus, Job Seekers Allowance customers have an initial back-to- back interview at their choice of either Alton or Petersfield to sort out their claims for benefits and seeking work. After completing this, they can sign on fortnightly at the Bordon branch and gain access to a range of specialised services. Job Centre Plus believe that managing its business in this way enables it to maximise the resources available and, in turn, give improved customer service. The council was unhappy because the level of unemployment in Bordon was higher than in the other towns and believed that this was a poor move. "It seems that they have refurbished Alton at a cost of thousands of pounds and we are being wound down. This will have an impact on jobs and we should be making a big fuss about this," Adam Carew said. Job Centre Plus acknowledged that Bordon is disadvantaged by not having a large office, but it did mention that Tesco promised to display all its vacancies at the local Job Centre branch. Whitehill Town Council felt that Bordon had been given the thin end of the wedge yet again, and Zoya Faddy urged locals who are unhappy with having to travel to Petersfield or Alton to tell the council about it. "Anyone who is suffering problems should get in contact with us, so that we have the ammunition to take it on," said Mrs Faddy.