CARE services for thousands of vulnerable people could be left crippled after a union renewed threats to hold a strike.

More than 600 social services workers at Greenwich Council are poised to stage a mass walkout over an escalating dispute about staff safety.

The action would force council chiefs to implement emergency procedures and hire costly agency staff in a bid to prevent services buckling.

Services affected would include youth offending teams, services for the deaf and blind, child protection and provision for incapacitated elderly people.

Applications for direct payments could also be thrown into chaos and delayed if the strike action goes ahead.

The dispute centres on the relocation of staff from Nelson House, Wellington Street, Woolwich, to a new multi-purpose centre at Riverside House in Woolwich High Street.

Greenwich branch secretary for Unison Onay Kasab says five social services receptionists currently work behind safety screens at Nelson House.

But when the new service at Riverside House is fully operational by February next year, there will be no protective screens.

Instead the council says it will hire a security guard, fit CCTV cameras and panic buttons and implement a managed queueing system to prevent customers getting angry.

But Mr Kasab says the measures are not good enough.

He said: "Unless the new centre includes security screens for the receptionists, we will strike.

"This will include all the social services workers who are members of the union and in the lead-up to a strike we would certainly expect to recruit more.

"We haven't decided how long we would strike for yet, but it would need to be for long enough to make an impact.

"The walkout would mean services would not be able to function properly and the council would have to implement emergency measures to ensure essential services are maintained."

Mr Kasab says the screens were introduced at Nelson House in response to violent incidents and says it is ludicrous not to fit them in the new offices.

This week it also emerged a social services receptionist is still off work suffering stress more than two months after a man broke through a door, got behind her screen and threatened to kill her.

Police were called to the scene on June 16 and arrested David Jennings.

He was initially released on police bail and later pleaded guilty to one count of criminal damage and one count of using threatening words and behaviour at Greenwich Magistrates' Court on August 18.

He will appear at Woolwich Magistrates' Court on September 15 for sentencing.

The 50-year-old was also issued with an injunction order at Woolwich County Court on June 29 which prohibits him from entering council buildings.

News of the potential strike action comes following an emergency meeting held between the council and Unison on August 18.

A council spokesman said: "The council is involved in ongoing discussions with staff and trade unions in order to resolve this situation."