By Rory Reynolds
AN after school club is under investigation after a five-year-old boy was left alone in the city centre after a day trip.
The child was stranded on busy Cockburn Street in Edinburgh after the children’s bus left without him last Thursday.
Parents say it was only when the bus got to Cameron Toll – a mile and a half away – that one of the trip organisers noticed the boy was missing.
Two members of staff rushed back in a taxi to where the boy was lost, by which time he had been taken to a police station.Police confirmed the boy was “safe and well” and had been on his own for less than an hour.
The Liberton After School Club is under investigation by the Care Commission after angry parents complained about the incident.
Lawrie Davidson, regional manager for the Commission said the incident was alarming.
He said: “This is a very serious incident and our priority is always to ensure the safety and well-being of children and other vulnerable people.
“We will carry out our own investigation of the complaint – we will liase with both the police and social work department if necessary.”
But Paul Black, whose nine-year-old attends the club, said he’s considering not sending his son to the club again.
He said: “I was pretty angry when my son told me about it. I’m just concerned that nothing’s been done about this. Some of the children were quite upset.
“It’s not very hard to do a head count.
“He’s been going to the club every day for the last three weeks but I’m not sure we’d let him go next time.”
Valerie Agnew, who runs the after school club said: “This is being investigated and I can’t comment.”
A spokeswoman for Lothian and Borders Police said: “I can confirm that a five-year-old was found by a member of the public at around 4.30pm on Thursday.
“He was reunited with an appropriate adult and was safe and well.”
