Education bosses have said they will "strive to do better" for Renfrewshire pupils with additional support needs (ASN) after a Paisley councillor insisted families had felt failed during the pandemic.
Councillor Karen Kennedy questioned officials at the latest meeting of the education and children's services board on what lessons they had learnt over the past year around caring for ASN children in mainstream schools.
She claimed families in her Paisley Northwest ward had told her they felt "let down" by the council in terms of online support for their children while schools had been closed, as she pressed officers on whether anything would change about their approach.
During the virtual meeting, Councillor Kennedy said: “I’d like to ask what lessons we’ve learned on dealing with ASN pupils in mainstream schools, and will anything change going forward?
"I’ve got personal experience and I’ve been contacted by constituents who feel let down with the support ASN pupils have been getting online.”
The council's head of schools Gordon McKinlay admitted there had been "huge tension" between trying to protect people's health and supporting ASN pupils and said the department had not got everything right.
But he insisted as schools reopen, staff would be working with families to make sure the help on offer was appropriate.
"This has been a hugely challenging time for any family with a child with ASN, and please be assured none of us underestimate how difficult this has been," Mr McKinlay told elected members.
"There has been a huge tension between keeping people safe and seeking to support families as best we can. We know we don’t always get that right.
"Schools continue to work to try and improve. However, that tension has remained.
"It has not been possible to have all the children with ASN in school during lockdown in order to be able to manage and cope with the tension between the health and safety of everyone and ongoing learning.
"We recognise this has not been easy, but schools are continuing to seek to work with families wherever possible and, as schools reopen, we want to be able to make sure the offer that is there for all families is appropriate going forward."
On March 15, all primary school pupils returned to the classroom full-time, while secondary students have adopted a combination of in-school and remote learning for the time being.
Steven Quinn, director of children's services, said while he took Councillor Kennedy's points on board, plenty of parents had complimented the support the council had given to ASN children during lockdowns.
He added: “We will always work on how we can continually improve our service, and for any young people whose parents feel we haven’t done as much as we could’ve, we have listened and we will continue to listen.
"Equally though, it is worth pointing out we’ve had many parents writing to us and speaking to teachers full of praise for what they have done to make sure all young people are engaged, from one-to-one conversations to ensuring they have learning material dropped off at home.
"While I take on board your point, Councillor Kennedy, and we will always strive to do better, I do think it's important I also talk about the schools in terms of the [good] work that has taken place."
