Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 September 2011
8 Deputy Michael Colreavy asked the Minister for Education and Skills his views on allowing children who have been attending primary school to continue to avail of the existing transport arrangements. [25097/11]
Amharc ar fhreagraEligible primary school children who meet the requisite distance criterion of 3.2 km will continue to retain school transport eligibility for the duration of their schooling. The distance criterion of 3.2 km is now being applied nationally to all eligible children availing of transport under the primary school transport scheme. Furthermore, in order to assist families residing in a closed school area, children enrolling in junior infants in September 2011 were considered eligible for school transport to their nearest school, provided they met the distance eligibility criterion.
The changes to the school transport scheme follow on from a detailed value for money review of that scheme. Many of the changes are designed as modernising and efficiency measures. This is aside altogether from the stark reality that the changes are required to enable the delivery of school transport at a reduced cost to the taxpayer, an absolute imperative in the circumstances facing this country.
My understanding is that there are families with children who qualify for the bus but the parent is driving behind. Will there be a review of the implementation of this scheme? In six months will the Minister ask if it is working? An example was given by a Member from his area. There may be low numbers on a bus. I have an example given by a woman who spoke of the school bus passing the house. The child in question has severe difficulties and attends a special school, which the bus actually passes. However, because of a technicality, which I will pass on to the Minister, the child does not qualify for transport.
The system does not work for many families. I ask the Minister to examine this at some stage. It creates a barrier with regard to parents and work, if the mother or father has to bring those children to school. That creates difficulty in itself and, regardless of the extra cost, it is a burden on those individuals. How does one explain that one child can go on the bus but another cannot? It does not make sense.
I will try to frame a response to that particular case if the Deputy forwards details of that child with special needs.
The parents travel 240 km per day, yet the bus goes by the door.
Regarding an ongoing assessment of the effectiveness of the school transport system, as a result of the value for money review instigated by the last Government a significant number of changes were proposed and are now being implemented. One such change is that the requirement from September 2012 will be that children will be provided with transport to their nearest school. That has the potential to throw up some small anomalies although these are not significant in number.
In its assessment of this provision, Bus Éireann gave us its opinion that approximately 5% of children currently attending school and availing of school transport would be adversely affected. I asked Bus Éireann to return to me with more detailed data on that point. Anecdotally, I am led to believe the number may be significantly greater than 5% and I wish to establish if that is the case and, if so, whether there is a solution we can arrive at that continues to produce the saving but does not impinge negatively on families as it might.
Is there any consultation between Bus Éireann or Bus Átha Cliath, the parents or the schools, in regard to changing bus pick-up points?
Given the implementation of the rule that the child will only be eligible for transport to the nearest school, will siblings be able to avail of transport to a school where older family members are attending? We do not want a situation where the children in a family are going to two different primary schools.
Regarding the rule for next year, do I take it this presumes there is a school place in the school in question? If a rule is rigidly applied the school may well be within the distance but there may not be a place provided. This may not seem a major point but it could prevent a child receiving an entitlement.
The changes as currently proposed would allow for a situation to arise where there might be one or two siblings who are currently eligible for school transport but younger siblings about to enter the school system are not eligible. The system as envisaged by the last Government would have allowed that to happen. We are trying to work out a way in order to ensure that does not occur. It will not be easy or straightforward and must be done in the context of continuing to achieve the saving of €17 million between now and 2014.
A number of anomalies may crop up. We are beginning to hear from schools and parents as to what they are. There is consultation and I have met with a number of parent groups from all over the country, both in my office and in their own locations. I am anxious to address the anomalies. They are few and far between but still exist and must be addressed.
