Conservative Councillor Carolyn Riddell-Carre was commenting after last week's meeting of the Scottish Borders Council executive was briefed on the Intensive Support and Monitoring (Scotland) Regulations 2008, which came into force in April.

Elected members were being advised of the multi-agency planned response to the regulations, which allows the Children's Hearing in every local authority under certain criteria to issue a movement restriction condition (MRC).

An MRC is a way of restricting a child's movements in such a way as may be specified by the Children's Hearing and places a duty on the local authority to prepare a plan for providing intensive support.

Restrictions on movement can specify that the child or young person must remain at a specified address between certain hours of the day and/or prohibit the young person from a certain area or address.

There is also an electronic monitoring element (tagging) involved with an MRC, which monitors the whereabouts of the child or young person at specific times.

But Mrs Riddell-Carre is unhappy about the impact of such measures: "Our social workers are not jailers and our communities should not be turned into open prisons," she told TheSouthern after the meeting.

"I have been portfolio holder for social work in the past and so I know how dedicated our social workers and other staff are – but they are not jailers."

"I will be all for this if it is what is right for the child and right for the community and not purely a measure designed to save money.

"But there are very few children in the Borders for whom this would be necessary. It might be right for some children, but not for others."

Before considering a movement restriction, as a condition of a supervision requirement, the Children's Hearing must be satisifed that the child or young person meets the criteria for secure accommodation

These are that the child or young person having previously absconded, is likely to do so again and put their physical, mental or moral welfare at risk, injure themselves or someone else.