Síle de Valera (Clare, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter as it provides me with an opportunity to clarify the general position regarding school transport for children residing in the Galway city, Oranmore and Claregalway areas. Under the terms of my Department's post-primary school transport scheme, a pupil is eligible for transport if he or she resides 4.8 km or more from his or her local post-primary education centre, that is, the centre serving the catchment area in which he or she lives.

The scheme is not designed to facilitate parents who choose to send their children to a post-primary centre outside of the catchment area in which they reside. However, children who are fully eligible for transport to the post-primary centre in the catchment area in which they reside may apply for transport on a concessionary basis to a post-primary centre outside of their own catchment area. This is otherwise known as catchment boundary transport. I should emphasise, however, that these children can only be facilitated if spare seats are available on the bus after all other eligible children travelling to the post-primary centre in which they live have been catered for. Such children have to make their own way to the nearest pick-up point within that catchment area.

Catchment boundaries have their origins in the establishment of free post-primary education in the late 1960s. For planning purposes, the country was divided into geographical districts, each with several primary schools feeding into a post-primary education centre with one or more post-primary schools. The intention was that these defined districts would facilitate the orderly planning of school provision and accommodation needs. They also facilitated the provision of a national school transport service, enabling children from remote areas to get to their nearest school.

Reviews of specific catchment boundaries may be carried out where appropriate. A number of reviews have been carried out over the years where, for example, a new post-primary school is established in an area where previously there was none or, conversely, where a "sole provider" school closes due to declining enrolment.

The area development planning initiative, involving an extensive consultative process carried out by the Commission on School Accommodation, will also inform future revisions to catchment areas. An area development plan takes account of demographic changes and projects future enrolments for existing schools and new schools if required.

Catchment boundary changes will be made where the implementation of the recommendations in an area development plan requires such adjustments. Catchment boundaries have provided and continue to provide a very useful tool in facilitating the orderly planning of school provision and accommodation needs and the operation of the national school transport service.

The Deputy will be aware that the provision of school transport is a massive logistical operation involving the transportation by Bus Éireann of over 135,000 children each day to primary and post-primary schools, including more than 8,000 children with special educational needs. While individual cases involving a pupil's eligibility for school transport are brought to my Department's attention from time to time, such cases are generally dealt with under the terms of the school transport scheme. Persons who are not satisfied with my Department's decision may appeal to the independent school transport appeals board.

I have no plans to review the catchment areas for Galway City, Oranmore and Claregalway, and school transport will continue to be provided under the terms of the post-primary school transport scheme.

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