OFFENDERS have been helping North Lanarkshire look its best for the Commonwealth Games.

They have carried out more than 5500 hours of supervised unpaid work under the Community Payback Scheme.

Teams have cleaned and painted school railings, bollards and the council's social work offices in Muirhead and picked up litter and cleared overgrown shrubbery in Stepps.

They also cleaned the Auchengeich mining memorial, painted a school fence in Moodiesburn, and created seating in Auchinloch park.

North Lanarkshire will host the triathlon at Strathclyde Park on July 24 and 26 and the cycling time trial on July 31.

l The Games organising committee has also named The Famous Grouse as its official whisky, adding the Glasgow-based Edrington group to its sponsors.