Distressed parents say East Ayrshire Council is leaving kids high and dry this summer
dailyrecord.co.ukWorried parents at a Cumnock school say their children will miss out on vital support due to council cuts.A popular summer scheme has been axed just days before the holidays, leaving frustrated families high and dry.Pupils who attend Hillside have been told their specifically tailored schemes for children with additional and complex support needs have been binned.Schools in Kilmarnock have also been hit by the reduction to important summer support services.Hillside, which offers specialist provision for children and young people aged 5 to 18 with complex needs and disabilities, has previously operated a summer scheme for parents of up to 40 hours in July.Instead, children are now being offered just one day in the entire month, with council bosses pledging to introduce a broader programme of activities to children across the region.But parents say the new model is completely unsuitable for the majority of kids with additional needs.East Ayrshire Council acknowledged their summer schemes wouldn't be for everyone and said that parents of additional support needs parents can contact schools to "commission specific activities".Kaye Donoghue, chair of the parent council at Hillside, told Ayrshire Live: "The support offered throughout the summer is vital and to cut it back like this is devastating."The council claim they're now offering more activities but most of them are totally unsuitable for children with additional needs."There is a lot of anger among parents and rightly so.
We feel like the children have just been forgotten about when they rely on these services."East Ayrshire Council pointed out that its education department wasn't solely responsible for the provision of summer activities.The local authority also said
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