A TOWN councillor has questioned how seriously dyslexia is being taken across the borough after he found a rogue link to a Thai pornographic blog on a council website.

Cllr Lee Siddall, who represents Winnington and Castle, was diagnosed with dyslexia when he was still at primary school, and recently spoke to the Guardian about how it affects his life.

However, Cllr Siddall was appalled recently when he visited the yourwestcheshire.co.uk site find out what resources are available to people across Cheshire West to find out more about the condition.

Northwich Guardian: The link, which has since been removed, to the websiteThe link, which has since been removed, to the website

When clicking on a link to the Cheshire Dyslexia Association – a local voluntary group – the website domain had expired, and the content being displayed was sexually explicit.

“I think this reflects extremely poorly on CWAC,” Cllr Siddall said.

“Putting the fact that CWAC doesn't even gather any useful data regarding dyslexia in schools and groups, everyone, together under SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disability) aside, it shows a lack of attention to detail that council taxpayers expect.

“Someone has really dropped the ball allowing members of the public to click on pornographic material when looking for help with dyslexia."

Northwich Guardian:

“I hope this does not reflect where dyslexia appears within the council's priority as I have not been impressed so far with the poor data gathering that has taken place in order to see how best to help children with this neurological disorder in the future. 

“I feel this may also open up a bigger question.

“If something as simple as web links are not being managed and checked efficiently, how effective is the council being managed overall by the officers in charge?”

Northwich Guardian: Northwich Town councillor Lee Siddall has questioned Cheshire West's approach to dyslexiaNorthwich Town councillor Lee Siddall has questioned Cheshire West's approach to dyslexia

A spokesman for the council said: "The council regularly monitors external links posted on our web platforms.

"The domain for that website, set up by the voluntary organisation, expired since our last audit and was removed as soon as our attention was drawn to it.

"The council will soon be launching a brand-new website to replace the current www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk.

"During phase two of this launch, all the information from yourwestcheshire.co.uk will be moved to the new site following a thorough audit of content."