Separate education centres for children of asylum-seekers should go, the conference agreed after hearing a series of horror stories.
Sheena Wardhaugh, union vice-president, said there was no justification for immigration officials keeping children at Dungavel centre in South Lanarkshire. Her education authority tried to intervene but was rebuffed.
Liz Vann, assistant head at Shawlands primary, Glasgow, told The TES Scotland of a Montenegran family who vanished last year. The eldest child transferred from primary to secondary but did not appear after the third day of term. Some weeks later the primary school took a call from a nurse at Dungavel concerned about the younger brother, who has significant learning difficulties.
They were in Dungavel for more than two months before being transferred to England.
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