A care worker has been struck off after leaving a 15-year-old child unsupervised at the side of the A9.
Kenneth Gowie admitted the incident to the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) and has been issued with a removal order, meaning he can no longer be employed as a care worker.
It happened on May 27, 2014 when Mr Gowie was employed by Cairngorm Outdoors as a residential support worker.
He was transporting the service user between Inverness and Kingussie when he stopped in a layby and ordered the 15-year-old to get out.
He then drove off and left the youngster unsupervised, putting them at “risk of harm” and causing them to become distressed.
The SSSC described the incident as a “breach of trust and confidence, and a misuse of power” which constituted a “failure in a duty of care”.
The watchdog said there was a severe risk of the teenager coming to physical or emotional harm as “the A9 is a notoriously dangerous road”.
It added Mr Gowie had shown a “lack of insight” and had refused to accept any wrongdoing.
However, the SSSC also found that he had “almost immediately” telephoned his manager to tell them what he had done and had fully co-operated with the council’s investigation.
The watchdog considered a suspension or ordering Mr Gowie to work under conditions but deemed these sanctions not appropriate.
In its judgment on the case, the SSSC said: “The council considers that a removal order is the most appropriate sanction being both necessary and justified in the public interest and to ensure the continuing trust and confidence in the social service profession, in the council as regulator and in the integrity of the statutory register.”