HUMAN rights officials have written to Scotland's top-performing state school to highlight its duties to disabled pupils.

The UK-wide Equality and Human Rights Commission contacted Jordanhill School, in the west end of Glasgow, after it was found to have unlawfully discriminated against a pupil with special needs last year.

The school said they could not accept a boy who was disabled and had dyslexia because it could not afford to fund the levels of support he required.

However, the family took the case to the Additional Support Needs Tribunal (ASNT), which ruled Jordanhill had "unlawfully discriminated" against the pupil by refusing to offer him a place at the school.

Alastair Pringle, Scotland Director of the commission, a public quango set up in 2007, said: "The Equality Act 2010 requires a school to make reasonable adjustments for disabled children.

"Additionally, the school must ensure they don't discriminate against disabled children by treating them unfavourably because of something connected to their disability.

"As the national equality body for Scotland, the commission works to eliminate discrimination and promote equality across the nine protected grounds set out in the Equality Act 2010, including disability.

"In certain circumstances, it is appropriate for the commission to seek clarity and underline the requirements of organisations and public bodies in relation to this Act."

Jordanhill, which regularly tops exam league tables, argues it is not covered by special needs legislation in the same way as other state schools because it is the only publicly-funded mainstream secondary in Scotland not under council control and the 2004 Education (Additional Support for Learning) Act relates to local authorities.

As a result, the school says it is not funded to provide the specialist services required for some pupils with more severe additional support needs.

However, the tribunal ruled in favour of the child and said there was a need for contingency planning within the school's financial management to allow flexibility within the support for learning department.

In a statement the school said: "As the community, comprehensive school Jordanhill prides itself on its inclusiveness. In reviewing and updating the accessibility strategy the board has carefully considered and incorporated recent guidance for schools from Scottish Government, along with feedback from the tribunal.

"That strategy reinforces our commitment to all our young people having access to positive learning environments and opportunities to develop their knowledge, skills, ambition, confidence and self-esteem to their fullest potential.

"Understanding and planning to meet the needs of all children prior to entry is an essential element of this process and we seek support from everyone engaging with a young person to do this.

"In the ASL Act the Scottish Parliament has determined that the school should be treated like all other Grant Aided schools. While the school seeks at all times to operate within the spirit of the Act, the school is not a local authority and has neither the powers nor the resources of a local authority."

Formerly run by Jordanhill College of Education as a demonstration school, Jordanhill it is now funded directly by a grant from the Scottish Government rather than through the local authority.

The school is non-denominational and non-fee paying, but has one of the most exclusive catchment areas in Scotland with only residents who live in a list of prescribed addresses allowed entrance.

The affluent nature of its catchment area is reflected by figures showing that 64 per cent of its pupils come from the richest neighbourhoods in Scotland, with just five per cent from the poorest.