Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 807: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the action she intends to take regarding the lack of a child protection policy for children with special needs who are transported to school by taxi, a service subcontracted out by Bus Éireann due to the lack of suitable buses; if her attention has been drawn to the fact that there is no vetting process for these taxi drivers and the only criteria for tendering is to own a public service vehicle licence; when legislation will be enacted to protect children in this vulnerable situation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [14407/06]

Síle de Valera (Clare, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Bus Éireann is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the school transport service on behalf of my Department. More than 135,000 children are carried on school transport services each day to primary and post-primary schools including about 8,000 children with special educational needs. The cost of transporting children with special educational needs, including grants, now accounts for about 33% of the overall allocation for school transport. The allocation for school transport in 2006 is €152 million.

Bus Éireann endeavours to provide the best possible transport service for children with special needs. The size of vehicle required is determined by the number of special needs pupils requiring the service and the suitability of the vehicle to meet the requirements of the pupil. The Deputy will appreciate that it is not always possible to facilitate a child, by virtue of his or her special needs, on a regular school transport service. Furthermore, many children with special needs travel long distances from home to school, and individual school transport, such as a taxi service, may be deemed to be the most suitable and appropriate mode of transport.

In the education sector, vetting is available in respect of prospective employees of children in detention schools, as well as special needs assistants and bus escorts accompanying children with special needs. My colleague Deputy Brian Lenihan, the Minister for State with responsibility for children, announced a doubling of the number of staff employed in the Garda central vetting unit, which has been relocated to Thurles under the Government's decentralisation programme, to ensure it can handle a greater volume of requests from employers. The provision of additional staff resources will enable the Garda Síochána's vetting services to be extended to all persons working with children and vulnerable adults. This will include teachers, caretakers, bus drivers and others working with children, whether on a full-time or part-time basis.

My Department allocates funding to schools to enable them to employ escorts on school transport services. These escorts are specifically engaged by the schools to cater for children with special educational needs whose care requirements are such as to necessitate continuous support. These escorts are a valuable service for children with special needs who require assistance.