Moray’s MSP has staged talks with education bosses amid a row over plans to reduce classroom support posts at some primary schools.
Richard Lochhead has been contacted by numerous parents from across the area over the past month, who have banded together to protest against the move.
The campaign group claims the local authority is victimising several children with additional support needs by withdrawing one-to-one support they had previously received.
Mr Lochhead has now met the Moray education chiefs who devised the scheme, in an effort to discuss how pupils will be affected.
He sat down with the council’s head of integrated services, Susan Maclaren, and inclusion manager, Pat McLennan.
During the summit, Mr Lochhead highlighted the “uncertainty” parents have been left facing – as many remain unaware how their children’s education will be impacted following the summer break.
The politician said: “I took the opportunity to highlight that parents have been left with a great deal of uncertainty over the summer holiday period.
“In response, the council has offered that all parents and guardians can have an appointment to discuss their concerns.”
Mr Lochhead welcomed the move to improve communication with parents as being “helpful” in reducing tensions.
He added: “It strikes me that increased communication between the council and parents is a positive step, and should lead to an increased level of understanding in the future.”
The individual meetings will begin this week, and some of the parents most concerned by the plans already have appointments lined up.
The council education bosses explained how a new three-year funding model for classroom support posts was intended to make the existing system fairer by ensuring that some schools did not end up with more hours than they need.
The authority maintains the new system will be offer schools “fairer access to the support they require”.
However, Elgin mum Nicola Nash says that a decision to withdraw much of her eight-year-old son Kai’s one-to-one support will effectively oust him from mainstream education.
The youngster has been diagnosed as “neurologically atypical”, and struggles to get by at school without individual supervision.
Mrs Nash will meet the council education chiefs this afternoon in Elgin to raise her concerns.
