The parents of a non-verbal girl have criticised a council after being “kept in the dark” over an incident involving their daughter which saw a staff member “removed” from her school.
Lauren and Sean Selkirk have accused The Highland Council of “not being transparent” by refusing to disclose the nature of the incident at the Inverness primary.
Their six-year-old daughter, Ayla, is a non-verbal child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Mrs Selkirk said the incident was reported on 21 January, but the family were not informed until 27 January.
‘Very distressing’
Speaking to Sky News, Mrs Selkirk said: “This has been very distressing. It has been the most horrendous couple of weeks. We are being left in the dark. We know nothing. It’s disgusting.
“As parents, I don’t understand why they think we don’t have the right to know. They’re doing everything in their power to keep it from us.
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“They quite simply do not care about us as a family and I’m really disappointed. We have gone through some amount of emotions these last few weeks.”
Mrs Selkirk said the school’s headteacher called to deliver the news and read out a prepared statement which said Ayla had been involved in an incident, a member of staff had been “removed”, and The Highland Council were investigating.
The family has not been told if the worker was a teacher, assistant or someone else.
Mrs Selkirk said: “If Ayla was verbal, I could at least say to her ‘has the teacher said or done anything to you?’
“And she would be able to say yes or no, which would immediately quash any concerns that I have.
“But the fact the council won’t even answer that question for me, they’re keeping me in the dark.”
Ayla ‘has not come to any harm’
Now more than four weeks on from the incident, Mrs Selkirk was once again refused further information during a meeting with a chief education officer on Thursday morning.
The council is reportedly “working within its legal policies” as to why details are not being shared.
Mrs Selkirk said: “I’ve been assured she has not come to any harm and that it’s not criminal.
“But the fact that they contacted social work, they have queried whether it was a potential child protection issue.”
Sky News contacted Police Scotland to enquire whether a criminal complaint had been made by the local authority in regards to the incident.
The force responded by saying there was nothing recorded in its system.
Mrs Selkirk added: “My mind has been in absolute overdrive these last few weeks – mine and my husband’s.
“They’re not being transparent with us as parents. With Ayla being non-verbal, they’re stopping me from being able to advocate for her.”
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The family has sought help from the SNP’s Fergus Ewing, the MSP for Inverness and Nairn.
Mrs Selkirk additionally cares for Ayla’s older brother, who also has autism and is non-verbal.
Due to the incident, the mother said she is “struggling to be happy, and they are picking up on it”.
“They know something’s not right.”
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Mrs Selkirk went on to say that the “breach of trust” had made her hesitate to send Ayla back to school, where she has attended for two years since nursery.
She said: “The staff that she’s currently in with, I do trust. Both my children have been in that setting and I do trust the girls that she’s in with.
“However, I do still struggle putting her to school because I don’t know what happened.”
A spokesperson for the local authority said: “The Highland Council is unable to comment on staffing matters.”
