NON-teaching staff employed by Inverclyde Council have been told to 'go back to work as normal' despite continued concerns about the spread of coronavirus.

A source told the Tele that cleaners, janitors, canteen staff and office workers were told to return to their usual working hours in the middle of January.

A concerned insider says the volume of staff in schools across the district now far outweighs the number of pupils from keyworker families.

He is concerned that clusters of staff in the buildings could help the virus to spread and wants education bosses to re-introduce a rota system for staff.

The source told the Tele: "We were told to just to go in once a week at first and they had us on reduced hours.

"Now we're all back in.

"There are sometimes six of us in the morning and six in the afternoon.

"We're going in in clusters.

"Anyone could be bringing the virus with them or taking it back home.

"I don't think it's right.

"It's endangering lives."

The whistleblower said staff haven't been tested for the virus and claimed that at times they've had no access to personal protective equipment.

He also expressed concern about overcrowding in staffrooms and cleaning staff travelling from school to school.

The man added: "We're just left to get on with it without a care.

"We're being treated like second class citizens."

Bosses at Inverclyde Council say that schools across the district are open to support online learning and to provide support for vulnerable children and children of key workers.

They state that regardless of the number of pupils attending a school, measures including the introduction of rotas and enhanced cleaning regimes are in place to reduce the risk of the virus spreading.

A spokesperson added: "All our staff have been made fully aware of the safe working practices and are regularly reminded about their importance in helping to slow the spread of the virus.

"We are very proud of the work that has been going on right across our schools and all other services throughout this pandemic to ensure that services are maintained during these times."

Robin Taggart, branch secretary for Unison, says that janitorial and cleaning staff have to attend work as school buildings need to be opened and cleaned.

He added that Inverclyde Council has agreed to keep this under review as Unison is keen for cleaning staff to be part of a rota.

Unison is also calling for the Scottish Government to move staff who work with children with additional support needs - who are unable to socially distance - higher up the vaccine list.

He said: "Trade unions have been in regular dialogue with council officers regarding the re-opening of schools and early years establishments.

"We understand that the vast majority of schools and early years staff are attending work on a rota basis given that there are significantly fewer children in the buildings.

"As the number of children attending school settles down, there may be an opportunity for parts of buildings to be blocked off and not used.

"This would be preferable as we want as few staff in schools as is practicable.

"We also want the Scottish Government to re-consider the position as to which frontline staff should be prioritised as part of the vaccination programme."