Humza Yousaf discrimination complaint against Dundee nursery upheld

A formal complaint made by Health Secretary Humza Yousaf about a nursery he accused of discriminating against his daughter has been upheld.

The Care Inspectorate found that Little Scholars in Broughty Ferry "did not promote fairness, equality and respect" when offering placements.

Mr Yousaf and his wife were told there was no availability for their daughter but said applicants with "white Scottish-sounding names" were accepted.

The nursery has denied the accusations.

When Mr Yousaf's wife Nadia El-Nakla applied for a space for the couple's two-year-old daughter, Amal, she said she was told there was no availability.

But the couple said applications submitted by friends and family for "white Scottish-sounding names" were accepted.

Speaking at the time he reported the nursery in August, Mr Yousaf told the BBC: "I'm really upset that at the age of two, my daughter, though she's oblivious to it all, has suffered discrimination.

"Tell us why three Muslim-sounding families were rejected and in some cases, less than 24 hours later, white Scottish families were accepted.

"There can be no reasonable explanation for that, and if there is one, then tell it to us.

"But so far, the nursery has failed to do so."

A spokesperson for the Care Inspectorate said: "We have upheld a complaint in relation to this matter.

"We found that the service did not promote fairness, equality and respect when offering placements.

"Every child in Scotland has the right to good quality care that meets their needs and respects their rights."

"We have identified areas for improvement and we will follow up on these to check on progress.

"We continue to monitor this service. If we are not satisfied that the improvements required have been met, we will not hesitate to take further action."

Little Scholars Day Nursery said back in August that any claim that it was not open and inclusive to all was "demonstrably false".

It said that its owners were of Asian heritage and it had regularly welcomed children and staff from a range of backgrounds "including two Muslim families currently".

The nursery said: "We note Mr Yousaf's call for a Care Inspectorate investigation and this is something we would absolutely welcome.

"We have nothing to hide and look forward to the opportunity to demonstrate the policies and procedures we have in place to ensure we are a nursery that is open and welcoming to all."

BBC Scotland has approached Little Scholars for a comment on the Care Inspectorate's findings.