Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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222. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if there is a precedent for children eligible for school transport but who are unable to attend their nearest school due to bullying to allow them to be eligible for the service to the next nearest school; and if not, his plans to implement same. [24324/17]

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

Currently almost 116,000 children, including some 12,000 children with special educational needs, are being transported in over 4,000 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually.

The purpose of my 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.

In general children are eligible for school transport if they satisfy the distance criteria and are attending their nearest school. 

Children who are not eligible for school transport may apply for transport on a concessionary basis which is subject to a number of terms and conditions that are detailed in the scheme. There is no provision within the scheme or plans under consideration to allow eligibility for school transport to children in the circumstances outlined by the Deputy. 

The Deputy may be aware that under the Education (Welfare) Act 2000, all schools are required to have in place a Code of Behaviour. The Act requires that the code must be prepared in accordance with guidelines issued by the Education Welfare Service (EWS) of the Child and Family Agency. The EWS guidelines make it clear that each school must have policies to prevent or address bullying and harassment and schools must make clear in their code of behaviour that bullying is unacceptable. The guidelines further state that as well as making explicit that bullying is prohibited in the school, and having an anti-bullying policy, the code of behaviour should indicate what action the school will take in relation to alleged breaches of the school's bullying policy.