LITTLE JESSICA THROWN UNDER THE BUS

Parents’ agony as disabled girl can't attend the school she loves as ‘heartless’ council chiefs deny her transport place

- BY SALLY HIND

A DISABLED youngster battling a life-limiting condition can no longer get to the school she loves after being denied vital transport by a council.

Jessica McMillan was two when she became the face of a Daily Record campaign after her life was saved by stem cells taken from the umbilical cord of another baby.

The now nine-year-old, from Galston, Ayrshire, overcame health battles after being diagnosed with MPS1, also known as Hurler syndrome, and has been thriving at Willowbank, a specialist primary school more than four miles away in Kilmarnock, for the last five years.

But her parents were shattered to be told during the summer holidays that she was being refused a place on her school bus for the first time.

They say the decision - branded “heartless” by their local MSP - means Jessica cannot travel to school without her mum Kathleen being forced to give up her job, as dad Sammy recovers from a stroke.

Sammy, 49, said: “It was just so much of a shock. It’s been the worst news we’ve had since Jessica was diagnosed when she was one.

“It's affected our whole summer. She's due back tomorrow but as it stands right now, she won't be going as we just can't get her there.”

Getting Jessica to school is vital for her learning and development but also for her self-esteem and her personal independence.

Her dad added: “Jessica has very complex needs. She has mobility problems and developmental delays. On the last assessment they said she was around the 24 months mark.

“The school has been great for Jessica. She has a spinal brace and only ever puts it on with her school uniform. She feels as though it's part of her school uniform.