Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
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117. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills what action she intends to take to address the anomaly whereby children can miss out on a school bus place as they are deemed to be travelling to schools that are not their nearest, despite their parents having no choice but to send them further afield due to lack of provision of school places locally; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15603/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year, over 147,900 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country. In addition, school transport scheme services are being provided in the current school year for over 3,800 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine. The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.

Children are eligible for transport at primary level where they reside not less than 3.2 kilometres from and are attending their nearest national school, and at post primary level where they reside not less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their nearest post primary school/education centre as determined by the department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.

A minimum number of 10 eligible children residing in a distinct locality, as determined by Bus Éireann, are required before consideration may be given to the establishment or retention of school transport services.

Children who are eligible for school transport and who have completed the application process on time are accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation.

Children who are not eligible for school transport, but who completed the application process on time, will be considered for spare seats that may exist after eligible children have been facilitated; such seats are referred to as concessionary seats.

Because of the nature of concessionary transport for non-eligible children and the priority of providing places for eligible children, there may be an excess of demand over supply for concessionary places, in these cases Bus Éireann will allocate tickets for spare seats using an agreed selection process. Where there is a transport service available, Bus Éireann liaise with families regarding ticketing.

In cases where the Department is satisfied that your nearest school is full, eligibility for school transport will be determined based on the distance you reside from your next nearest school having regard to ethos and language.

To establish that the nearest school is full parents must provide:-

- The detailed steps taken to enrol your child in the nearest and next nearest schools

- Evidence that an application for enrolment was made within the deadline dates specified by the school and

- A letter from the School Authorities confirming that the school was full at the time of the child's enrolment

This documentation can be sent to school transport section at the address below for consideration to school_transport@education.gov.ie

For families that wish to make an application for the 2023/24 School year, the Bus Éireann family portal is now open for new applications only for school transport services for the 2023/24 school year. New applications are considered as:

- Pupils who will be attending junior infants in primary school or first year in post-primary school for the first time in 2023.

- Pupils that may move home address or will be attending a new school for the 2023/24 school year

Applications can be made by visitingwww.buseireann.ie/schooltransport

The closing date for new applications is Friday 28 April 2023.

Any new applications made after the closing date are considered late applications and families may not receive a ticket for school transport services.

Families do not need to make a new application if they have already applied in previous year(s) as the application will ‘rollover’ for the 2023/24 school year.

The Bus Éireann family portal will be open to accept payments/medical card details from the 3 April 2023 until 9 June 2023. Payment made after the deadline date will be deemed late and a seat may not be available to families at that stage.

Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
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118. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her Department will publish the details of all the actions it is undertaking to ensure sufficient numbers of school buses and drivers on the school transport scheme for the coming academic year, so that children are not left behind as is the case in north Kildare (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15604/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the current school year over 147,900 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, are transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country.

In addition, school transport scheme services are being provided in the current school year for over 4,500 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine.

The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.

Under the terms of the Department's Post Primary School Transport Scheme children are eligible for transport where they reside not less than 4.8 kilometres from and are attending their nearest post primary school/education centre as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, having regard to ethos and language.

Children who are eligible for school transport and who complete the application process on time will be accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation for the 2023/24 school year.

In addition, temporary alleviation measures have been continued for the 2023/2024 school year(s), pending completion of the review and this means that transport will be 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 complete 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.

A minimum number of 10 eligible children residing in a distinct locality, as determined by Bus Éireann, are required before consideration may be given to the establishment or retention of school transport services.

Because of the nature of concessionary transport for non-eligible children and the priority of providing places for eligible children, there may be an excess of demand over supply for concessionary places, in these cases Bus Éireann will allocate tickets for spare seats using an agreed selection process. Where there is a transport service available, Bus Éireann liaise with families regarding ticketing.

The School Transport Scheme is a demand led scheme, Bus Éireann organises for vehicles to be full to capacity with tickets based on eligible applications received and based on the seating capacity of the vehicle.

Bus Éireann have confirmed that all eligible pupils who applied and registered on time for the 2022/23 school year have been facilitated on transport where it is in operation. The families referred to by the Deputy who have applied for transport in this area are attending their third and fourth closest schools and are therefore, not eligible for transport. In cases where the Department is satisfied that a family's nearest school is full, eligibility for school transport will be determined based on the distance they reside from the next nearest school having regard to ethos and language.Families have been requested to provide the details below which have not yet been received in School Transport Section.

- The steps taken to enroll your child in the nearest and next nearest schools

- Evidence that an application for enrolment was made within the deadline dates specified by the school and

- A letter from the School Authorities confirming that the school was full at the time of enrollment for your child

This documentation can be sent to school transport section at the address below for consideration toschool_transport@education.gov.ie