Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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101. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will issue a final response to a query that was directed to his office in July 2016 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29222/16]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department.

During the 2015/16 school year in the region of 114,000 children, including some 10,000 children with special educational needs, were transported in approximately 4,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools annually throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres.

My Department allocates funding to schools, for the employment of escorts to accompany special educational needs children who are eligible for school transport and whose care and safety needs are such as to require the support of an escort. Bus escorts are not a feature of mainstream school transport services operating under my Department's Primary or Post Primary School Transport Schemes.

The provision of funding from my Department for the employment of an escort in the circumstances in question cannot be facilitated.