A Christian charity opposed to the Scottish Government's plans to appoint a 'named person' for every child has vowed to fight on, despite a further legal setback.

Christian Action Research and Education (Care) for Scotland, said it was disappointed after the Inner House Court of Session in Edinburgh dismissed an appeal against a previous ruling by Lord Pentland that the ‘named person’ scheme does not breach human rights and data protection laws.

Care, the Christian Institute and the Family Education Trust, and other members of the No2NP campaign had sought a judicial review of what they described as "the Scottish Government's draconian state guardian plans".

The appeal judges ruled that Lord Pentland had been right to reject the judicial review and concluded that the concerns raised by the groups about interference in family life were 'hyperbole'.

They said named persons were "part of what is intended to be an enlightened scheme to promote child welfare generally, albeit one not universally seen in such a positive light."

In a decision delivered by Lord Carloway, the Lord Justice Clerk, the court ruled that the plans did not infringe on parents' right to family life and the Scottish Government was entitled to introduce the policy.

Meanwhile it dismissed concerns from the charities that Lord Pentland had misunderstood the principle behind their legal challenge. Instead, the judges said the charities' fears had been exaggerated: "The mere creation of a named person, available to assist a child or parent, no more confuses or diminishes the legal role, duties and responsibilities of parents in relation to their children than the provision of social services or education generally," Lord Carloway said.

"It has no effect whatsoever on the legal, moral or social relationships within the family. The assertion to the contrary, without any supporting basis, has the appearance of hyperbole."

However the court did rule that Lord Pentland had bene wrong to conclude that the four charities involved in the appeal did not have the standing in law to bring the case.

Care for Scotland said the ruling was "regrettable". Parliamentary Officer Dr Gordon Macdonald said:

“We are extremely disappointed. In recent months, the Scottish Government’s misguided state guardian plans have been strongly criticised by the police, teachers, academics and prominent lawyers as well.

“Once you emerge from the murky depths of the Scottish Government’s guide to how the guardian scheme will work, it is clear these plans are overly complicated and completely unworkable."

The charity remained convinced that the proposals would lead to breaches of data protection and human rights laws, he said, adding: "This is completely unacceptable. These draconian measures may come from a place of good intentions, but the consequences for the social fabric of our nation will be disastrous.”

However others welcomed the decision. Theresa Fyffe, Director of nursing body RCN Scotland, said: “We have confidence in in the named person model and the protection and support it will offer to young people and their families across Scotland. But for the legislation to be successful adequate resources must be in place to support those, like health visitors, who will take on the new role. It is now crucial that all those involved in delivering the legislation work together to ensure that it delivers.”

Seamus Grearson, of the Scottish Secondary Teachers Association, said Lord Carloway had been right to conclude that the law was only intended to provide children and families with a single point of contact if they needed help.

Seamus Searson General Secretary said “The legislation does not undermine the role of the parent but help to support the parent. The SSTA continues to support the Government and looks forward to continue working with children and young people and their family’s to enable them to acquire an individualised support package that will meet their needs.

"The SSTA welcomes this decision. However, we must ensure that teachers are properly trained and given sufficient time to undertake this extremely important role."