Seanad debates
Tuesday, 28 March 2023
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
School Transport
12:30 pm
Vincent P Martin (Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit go dtí an Seanad. The announcement by the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, of free school transport for all was initially greeted by many with great fanfare. The reality on the ground for some communities is entirely different.It has turned the lives of people living in the communities of Rathcoffey and Straffan upside down. It has caused chaos that is ongoing. There is a single bus service serving these communities that goes to the Maynooth Education Campus. At present, 26 students do not have a place on their own school bus. They had places until that announcement was made, but those places no longer exist because there are not enough seats. People who were on that bus for a number of years were leapfrogged. They were happy to pay the €350 per year, but now there are simply no places on the bus. At a recent public meeting in Friel's of Straffan, there was palpable frustration and dignified anger in the room. Parents want an end to this. They do not want another school year to start with this stress and chaos.
All political parties support the provision of a second bus. That is not to mention the carbon emissions and gridlock being caused. In the Public Gallery we are joined by No Planet B students from another part of County Kildare. They are in solidarity with the students whose lives have been turned upside down by not having a basic service to bring them to and from school safely. The students present, who met senior Ministers this morning, are conscious we could avoid additional carbon emissions. There are simply not enough seats on the bus. The demand clearly justifies two buses, with one serving Straffan and the other Rathcoffey. The demand is growing all the time. The sharp increase in population in Kildare is well-documented. Currently 26 people cannot get on a bus, but we believe next year the figure will well exceed 50. It is going to get worse and worse because many children have accepted places in Maynooth Education Campus this year. This problem will escalate come September.
The difficulty is compounded by the fact that most of the pupils in Straffan and Rathcoffey are not deemed eligible for school bus transport to Maynooth because we are dealing with an obsolete, outdated policy on top of this inadequate bus service. Clane is these pupils' nearest school, but it is full. They have a right to go to Maynooth for whatever reason; it is their prerogative. They may not want same-sex education. It should be a demand-led service. There are 26 students who have been deprived of a bus place they always had and took for granted, and next year this could be 50 to 55 children from Straffan and Rathcoffey. I plead with the Minister of State to try to hammer home this fundamental point. These students are not asking for an awful lot. The situation is utterly unsatisfactory at the moment. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the Chamber and look forward to his response.
Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank Senator Martin for raising this important matter, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Foley.
Before I address the specific issues raised, I will provide an outline of the extent of the school transport scheme. The scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported daily to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. There has been a 21% increase in tickets issued to eligible students and a 38% increase in tickets issued to concessionary students in the 2022-23 school year compared with the previous one. In addition, in the current school year school transport scheme services are being provided for over 4,500 children who have arrived in Ireland from Ukraine.The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9 million. The school transport scheme is an important service for families and children. The purpose of the 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. Children are eligible for transport at primary school level where they reside not less than 3.2 km from, and are attending, their nearest national school, and at post-primary level where they reside not less than 4.8 km from, and are attending, their nearest post-primary school or education centre as determined by the Department and Bus Éireann having regard to the ethos and language.
Children who are eligible for school transport and who have completed the application process on time are now accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation. In addition, temporary alleviation measures have been continued for the current 2022-23 school year and will continue for the 2023-24 school year pending completion of the review. This means that transport is provided for post-primary pupils who are eligible for transport to their nearest school and are attending their second-nearest school, and who apply and pay by the closing dates. Children who are not eligible for school transport but who completed the application process on time are considered for spare seats that may exist after eligible children have been facilitated. Such seats are referred to as concessionary seats.
In regard to the specific issues raised by the Senator, it is understood that the pupils in the area referred to are attending their third- or fourth-closest school and are therefore not eligible for transport under the terms of the school transport scheme. If families have applied to attend their nearest school in regard to ethos and language and have been advised by the school authorities that it is full, the Department will consider whether students can be deemed eligible for transport to the next-nearest school. These families have been asked to submit details to the school transport section in this regard where their requests can be assessed.
A review of the school transport scheme commenced in February 2021. The review is being conducted with a view to examining the current scheme, its broader effectiveness and sustainability, and to ensure that it serves students and their families adequately. Phase I of the review examined the impact of eligibility criteria on mainstream pupils who are eligible for transport to their nearest school but attend their next-nearest school. The report was completed in June 2021.
Following consideration of the report for the 2021-22 school year the provision of temporary alleviation measures was approved for transport for post-primary students who were otherwise eligible for school transport but were attending their second-nearest school and had applied and paid on time. These measures have been continued for the current 2022-23 school year and will again continue for the 2023-24 school year pending completion of the review. These measures mean that transport will be provided for post-primary pupils who are eligible for transport to their nearest school and who are attending their second-nearest school and who apply for school transport by 28 April 2023 and pay for the ticket or enter medical card details by 9 June 2023. These measures will again continue for the 2023-24 school year. Phase II of the review has progressed significantly and is being completed in tandem with phase III which is well under way.
Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
Before I bring Senator Martin back in I welcome to the Gallery Ms Victoria Danlenska, who is a member of the Ukrainian community and former member of the armed forces. She is a guest of Senator Craughwell and is very welcome. I thank her for being here.
Vincent P Martin (Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I thank the Minister of State for outlining the facts. A number of parents are tuned in live to this at home. They will be putting all their hopes in the review but they have not heard anything new. They feel they are running around in circles. They are losing hope. They simply want an adequate bus service of sufficient capacity to bring all their children to the school. I know that this is the responsibility of the Minister, Deputy Foley. I hope there will be something new and radical in her review’s outcome and conclusions because an unintended consequence of her decision has caused chaos. No children should be left behind. Currently they are being left behind.We need a school transport system. I cannot urge that enough on the Minister of State. It behoves the Government to deliver this for the people of Rathcoffey and Straffan who are under growing stress because there is no place for their children on the bus. This situation is going from the frying pan into the fire. It seems to be getting worse, not better. We hope there will be a breakthrough in the review. We want to see action and delivery. We do not need more words; we need action and a resolution.
Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source
I again thank the Senator for the opportunity to update the House on school transport for the current school year. I reiterate that all eligible pupils who applied on time this year have now been facilitated on board a service for the 2022-23 school year. In addition, there has been a 40% increase in the number of tickets issued to concessionary pupils for the current school year, compared with the number issued in 2021-22.
As I mentioned, the Department is conducting a review of the school transport scheme. Wider considerations relating to the operation of the scheme are included in the review. Significant consultation has been undertaken as part of the review. A public survey was administered for parents, guardians, students who use the bus service and those who do not use it but would like to do so. A broad array of stakeholders, including schools, special education interest groups, industry representatives and other Departments, were consulted as part of the review. Although work on the review was impacted by the conflict in Ukraine and increased demand for the scheme in summer 2022 due to fees being waived, officials in the Department are working to complete phase 3 of the review in the coming weeks, with recommendations on the future operation of the Department school transport scheme. Once approved by Government, it is planned that the review will be published.