Vol. 486 No. 6
325 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason persons (details supplied) in County Cork have only been offered a shared remote area grant so that their sons (details supplied) can travel to Glanmire community college in view of the fact that the Department has failed to provide a school transport system for the area and there are sufficient numbers in the area to provide this service. [3243/98]
Under the terms of the school transport scheme, a special school bus service may be established where there is a minimum of seven eligible pupils within an area, which can be reasonably and economically served by a bus route.
In the case referred to by the Deputy, there are only five eligible pupils from the area in question offering for transport to Glanmire community college. I regret it would not be open to my Department to establish a special service for these pupils.
However, remote area grants may be sanctioned where children are basically eligible for transport but there is no service to the school on which they could be accommodated. These grants are shared where there is more than one family from a particular area.
A remote area grant has been sanctioned in this case. As the families in question live in the same locality, they are expected to share the grant which has been sanctioned.
