Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the delegates who have participated in the discussion. I am not a member of the committee and this is the first time I have engaged in a committee other than the one of which I am a member. I am here because of the pure frustration I felt after last year's onslaught, for which nobody could ever have prepared me as a newly elected representative. Ms McElduff and I exchanged numerous emails throughout last summer and at the end of the summer holidays I was still battling the school bus crisis. What happened was shameful and disgraceful. Parents were living in hope the review would bring them salvation, but it did not. What has the Department learned in the past 12 months? Where should the policy change? What should the committee take to the Department of Education and Skills to get it to change the policy? The Ombudsman for Children, Dr. Niall Muldoon, has highlighted as the top issue affecting children the rural school transport service.

It is a live issue.

As my party's spokesperson on children, I want to know what the Department has learned and taken on board from the recommendations of the Ombudsman for Children? Is the Department considering the introduction of tolerance levels? Currently, we are very restricted. The requirement is that there must be ten concessionary children in order for a service to be provided. In terms of qualification for a service, would a tolerance level ranging from seven to ten, eight to ten or nine to ten children be considered? What changes in most rural schools year in and year out is flexibility in coping with change. We lost a school bus service in my area last year - Ms Niamh McElduff is well aware of this - because the number of eligible children decreased to eight. The number has increased to ten this year and the service will be restored. It was shocking that the service was lost last year.

Parents and teachers are caught in a catch-22 situation in that teachers will not say that they have an issue in their rural schools because that would flag such schools as being at risk. Parents might not think twice about sending their children to a particular school but if it does not have a transport service, then it is a school at risk. Commentary cannot be made on that because we do not want to advertise the enrolment. Teachers do not come forward and engage in the big media campaign - which I would have recommended that they should have done - for the fear of schools losing enrolments.

My colleague, Senator Gallagher, spoke about reviews. When was the last time the Department carried out a review? How often are reviews carried out? Population changes occur in catchment areas.

Deputy Nolan spoke about dividing parishes. We do not do that in rural Ireland. If one plays with Portumna GAA, one sticks with playing there, one does not move to play with Mullagh GAA. It is as basic as that. One is loyal to one's community and, as a result, parents make do, but that is not good enough.

Another factor came to light last year. I am going to mention this even though it might not be the right thing to say. People question why, for example, assistance and a bus service can be provided to transport only one child with disabilities in circumstances where the bus passes right by their front doors and their children attend the same school. There should be none of that, no judging of other people. The reason it happens is because the parents are not getting co-operation from the Department and then they contact Bus Éireann and their public representatives. This meeting is about the Department. What has the Department done in the past 12 months to ease the pressure on children trying to get access to schools.