Aberdeenshire Council has accepted a court ruling requiring it to pay almost £11,000 towards the cost of a disabled youngster’s special schooling.
The local authority will meet school fees of £12,500 a year, paying £10,950 annually after deduction of government pre-school funding of £1,550.
A council spokesman said: “We will, of course, abide by the sheriff’s decision and are making plans for service provision in the future in line with this judgment.”
Newmachar mother Lynne Macaulay applied to send her severely disabled son Rory to the Camphill Rudolph Steiner School in Aberdeen, the four-year-old having already spent five months in its Amber Nursery which provides specialist care.
Little Rory had pneumococcal meningitis as a baby and is deaf, brain-damaged, partially sighted and largely immobile.
While Mrs Macaulay said her son required the one-to-one care the private school could provide, the council claimed St Andrew’s School at Inverurie would be able to provide suitable care for Rory.
Two appeals were turned down before Sheriff James Tierney ruled this month that the youngster should get support for a place at Camphill.
A further hearing on expenses in the case will be heard at the Aberdeen court on September 25.
Mrs Macaulay, of rural Meddens, yesterday said she was pleased with the verdict but did not wish to comment further.
Yesterday marked the start of Meningitis Awareness Week.
Every day in the UK it is estimated that eight people become ill with disease – half of them under five years old – which can potentially be fatal to both children and adults within hours. Further information on this week’s B Aware campaign is available by logging on to www. meningitis.org