Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 June 2021
841. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Education the details of the eligibility criteria for availing of school transport with particular emphasis on concessionary transport pupils who have to wait until the second week in August to find out whether they have a seat or not; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32068/21]
View answerSchool Transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 114,100 children, including over 14,700 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country at a cost of over €224.7m in 2020.
The purpose of my Department's School Transport Scheme is, having regard to available resources, to support the transport to and from school of children who reside remote from their nearest school. Under the terms of my Department’s School Transport Scheme, children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 3.2kms at primary and 4.8kms at post-primary and are attending their nearest School/Education Centre as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.
All children who are eligible for school transport and who complete the application and payment process are accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation.
Children who are not eligible for school transport may apply for transport on a concessionary basis only. Concessionary transport is subject to a number of terms and conditions including the availability of spare seats on an existing service. The availability of concessionary transport may vary from year to year and cannot be guaranteed for the duration of a child’s education cycle.
In October 2019, my predecessor announced a review of the school transport scheme with a view to taking a fresh look at the service and its broader effectiveness and sustainability. The review is being conducted to ensure that the school transport is fit for purpose and that it serves students and their families adequately.
It is planned that the Steering Group will report to me on an interim basis as the review progresses, with a view to presenting a final report later this year with recommendations on the future operation of the Department’s School Transport Scheme.
The Steering Group will report to me initially on preliminary findings regarding eligibility, before moving to consider and report on broader issues such as the objectives of the scheme and the alignment of the scheme with other initiatives and wider Government policy. The Steering Group has recently reported to me with this preliminary interim report which is under consideration.
