Written answers

Monday, 9 September 2024

Department of Education and Skills

School Transport

Photo of Michael RingMichael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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598.To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if school transport for a child (details supplied) will be approved; and if she will make a statement on the matter.[34785/24]

Photo of Norma FoleyNorma 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 2023/24 school year over 163,800 children, including over 136,000 pupils travelling on primary and post primary services, 20,200 pupils with special educational needs, and 7,400 pupils who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country.

The total cost of the scheme in 2023 was €382.02m.

Over 140,000 mainstream tickets have issued for the 2024/2025 school year, which is already 3% more than the total tickets issued for the full 2023/2024 school year.

Under the terms of my Department's School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs, children are eligible for transport where they are attending the nearest recognised school that is or can be resourced to meet their special educational needs.

The National Council for Special Education acts in an advisory role to the Department of Education on the suitability of placements for children with special educational needs. Under the terms of the School Transport Scheme for Children with Special Educational Needs, the Department will consider the report of the Special Education Needs Organiser (SENO). School transport is provided to children with special educational needs who are attending the nearest school to their place of residence that is or can be resourced to meet their educational needs, as identified by the SENO.

The Department and Bus Éireann are very conscious of the specialised nature of transport provision for children with special educational needs. This is reflected in the standard of dedicated service provided and the fact that these services are generally planned and timetabled to operate on a door-to-door basis. In certain cases, the Department also provides funding to schools for the employment of escorts to accompany children whose care and safety needs require this level of support while they travel to and from school.

Given the concerns regarding the welfare of these children with special educational needs, it is not always practical to make these services available to children who can travel on standard mainstream school transport services. As to do so might diminish the level of care and safety that the Department and Bus Eireann wish to provide for these vulnerable children.

Since the sibling referred does not meet the criteria for school transport for children with special educational needs, they are therefore not eligible for school transport under the terms of the scheme.

In instances where there is only one family on a dedicated service, a sibling who is not eligible may be accommodated on board this service until such time another child who is eligible for school transport under the terms of scheme requires this service. At this time the non-eligible child is removed from the dedicated service.

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