NEWPORT City Council leader Debbie Wilcox has offered an apology to anyone left ‘distressed’ by confusion surrounding the future of the Sensory and Communication Support Unit (SenCom).

Councillors heard that parents and carers have been ‘put through hell’ by the authority’s handling of its future within the service.

The council had planned to withdraw from the service to create its own team, saving £250,000 a year, but decided this month to defer its decision until 2020.

South Wales Argus: Council leader Debbie Wilcox was asked to apologise to those affected by the SenCom 'debacle'Council leader Debbie Wilcox was asked to apologise to those affected by the SenCom 'debacle'

This has created further uncertainty for 16 support workers which SenCom had already planned to lose after Newport council first announced plans to leave the service in November.

Newport Independents councillor Chris Evans, on behalf of his absent party colleague Kevin Whitehead, asked for clarity at a council meeting on Tuesday.

He asked: “Will the leader apologise on behalf of her admin to the parent and carers who have been put through hell, and in some cases personal expense, during the whole debacle?

“Will she also seek to clarify the position of the 16 highly trained staff who have been left not knowing if they have a job or not, as a matter of urgency?”

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According to Cllr Wilcox, the council’s stance changed following a process of negotiation to allow for an independent review of the service to ensure Newport users were getting the ‘best possible service’.

South Wales Argus: Dawn Battersby with her grandson Brogan, who has relied on SenCom's support since he was three months oldDawn Battersby with her grandson Brogan, who has relied on SenCom's support since he was three months old

The meeting heard that only ‘three or four issues’ had been raised by 380 parents surveyed by the council, though only 170 parents were invited to drop-in consultation sessions in January.

READ MORE: Newport council's SenCom consultation meetings branded "belated" and of "questionable quality" in Assembly

“On the positive side, 375 users were fine with what we were intending to do,” said Cllr Wilcox.

“We hope the independent assessment will resolve the service for our most vulnerable children.

“I would be the last person, after spending a lifetime working with children, that would want anything less than the best for them.”

When pushed for an apology by Cllr Evans, the council leader said: “I don’t shirk doing my duty.

“If an apology is needed to ameliorate any amount of distress that’s been caused to a single person regarding this, then I’ll be the first to apologise.”