Assurances have been offered to parents amid fears about the controversial appointment of a ‘named person’ for every child in Scotland.
Fife councillors called for greater clarity about the role to be introduced next August.
Councillor Alice McGarry said parents feared these workers health visitors and teachers would “swoop in” on their children.
Urging Fife Council to issue information to allay fears, the SNP councillor said: “There is a lot of scaremongering out there and it is important that the named person role is properly explained.”
Members of the council’s south west Fife area committee claimed that people were in the dark about the role intended to be a trusted point of contact.
Conservative councillor Dave Dempsey said: “There is the idea there’s somebody out there getting told things about children that the parents are not and this person is somehow more important.”
Labour councillor Gavin Yates said government ministers were warned at an early stage by children’s organisations that greater clarity was needed.
There is widespread opposition to the legislation, including from the Christian Institute Scotland which warned family life and privacy would be eroded and parents’ rights trampled on.
Fife Council head of service Carrie Lindsay said: “For most children, the named person will never need to be involved in their care but for others this person will provide a point of contact that the child knows, can trust and will also have an overview and knowledge of them and their family context.”
Acting minister for children and young people Fiona McLeod said: “The legislation is about making sure that we are doing everything in our power to protect vulnerable children.”