Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta as an ábhar seo a ardú. I am responding on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State with responsibility for lifelong learning, Deputy Haughey. I am pleased to have an opportunity to clarify the general position regarding the provision of school transport under the Department of Education and Science's post-primary school transport scheme. Under the terms of the 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 - 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 their own catchment area. This is also known as catchment boundary transport. I emphasise that these children can be facilitated only 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 in that catchment area. The Deputy will be aware that the provision of school transport is a massive logistical operation that involves the transportation by Bus Éireann of approximately 135,000 children, including over 8,000 children with special educational needs, to primary and post-primary schools each day. While individual cases involving a pupil's eligibility for school transport are brought to the Department's attention from time to time, such cases are generally dealt with under the terms of the school transport scheme. Those who are not satisfied with decisions made by Bus Éireann or the Department may appeal to the school transport appeals board.

The Department of Education and Science made preliminary inquiries today about the provision of school transport from Annascaul to Milltown secondary school, which is the issue that has been raised by the Deputy this evening. Two separate catchment areas are involved. The Department understands from Bus Éireann, which operates the school transport scheme, that a small number of children from the Annascaul area who applied for catchment boundary transport to the secondary school in Milltown could not be accommodated this year. As Bus Éireann is responsible for the planning of school bus routes and the allocation of appropriately sized buses for eligible pupils, the parents of these children should continue to liaise with the company's local office regarding the future availability of seats. However, I emphasise that catchment boundary transport is not guaranteed.

The Deputy is probably aware that the Department has commenced a value for money review of the school transport scheme, including catchment boundaries. It is expected that the review will be completed before the end of this year. The steering committee is examining the original objectives of the scheme, whether these objectives remain valid today, the extent to which they are being achieved and whether there are possibilities for economies or efficiencies that would improve the value for money of the scheme. The review will also examine fundamental issues such as catchment boundaries. When it has been completed, the review will be published and sent to the Select Committee on Education and Science. I suggest that Deputy Sheahan should attempt to influence the findings of the review as he sees appropriate. I will ask the Minister, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe, to do likewise.

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