<BA kind-hearted shop keeper has offered to pay for specialist care to help little Gabrielle Turner - but Education bosses are set to refuse the cash.

Srirang Moholkar's offer to meet the estimated £1,000 annual bill to provide the four-year-old with a lunchtime care assistant at school is set to be refused by education bosses.

Gabrielle, of Inverness Avenue in Westcliff, needs to be fed through a tube because of a medical condition.

Education bosses say it is not their responsibility to pay for someone to feed her at Westborough Primary School in Macdonald Avenue.

Headteacher at the school, Jenny Davies, says they don't have the funds and that education bosses have a duty to meet the cost themselves.

In the meantime mum Kelly has had to visit the school every lunchtime for the past two weeks just to feed her daughter.

Mr Moholkar, who runs the M&M newsagents on West Road, decided to offer his help after reading about Gabrielle's plight.

Mrs Turner is a regular customer in his shop and when she told him about the problem he said he wanted to do what he could.

He said: "To be honest I would be glad if the council were to pay for this as they should.

"But it is ridiculous that this little girl cannot get the help she needs.

"I offered to start collecting for her and I would be happy to pay for the first year because I cannot believe what the council is doing. If they can find money for other things then why not this? Is it not important enough?"

Southend Council's director of education Stephen Hay said they wouldn't accept the offer because he believed they could sort it out themselves.

He declined, however, to say how and when they would resolve the issue or who would pay.

Mrs Turner said she was grateful to Mr Moholkar and added: "It's a small family business and I think it's lovely he's doing this. But he shouldn't have to. The council should be ashamed of themselves.

"If a man running a small business can offer to do it then why can't they?"

The school gets an average of £2,020 each year for a child of Gabrielle's age from the Local Education Authority (LEA) and an extra £410 a year average for children with special needs.

Mrs Davies said they had calculated the special care Gabrielle needed would cost an extra £1,000 a year to provide.

She said: "The LEA have told me I should pay for it out of my own budget but she needs one-to-one care.

"It needs special training but nothing like that is covered in my budget. That was why I asked for an assessment to be carried out. I don't feel we are being supported by the LEA.

"It's a very sad day when we have to battle for everything a child is entitled to and I am not sure this is a good use of everybody's time.

Mr Hay said "We would thank Mr Moholkar very much but I am sure we can amicably resolve the situation without the need for that. I have every confidence we will resolve it."

Helping hand - Gabrielle Turner with Jon Moholkar of M & M newsagents her mum Kelly

Picture: STEVE O'CONNELL

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.