Seán Sherlock
Question:331. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Education the number of children with additional needs awaiting school transport provision, by county. [40134/23]
View answerWednesday, 20 September 2023
Questions (331)
Written answers
The School Transport Scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department of Education. In the 2022/2023 school year, over 149,000 children, including over 18,000 children with special educational needs, were transported on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country.
There was an increase of 21% in tickets issued to eligible students and an increase of 38% in tickets issued on a concessionary basis in the 2022/23 school year compared to the 2021/22 school year.
In addition, school transport scheme services were provided for over 5,400 children who have arrived to Ireland from Ukraine.
The total cost of the scheme in 2022 was €338.9m.
There has been an overall increase in both applications and tickets issued for the 2023/2024 school year in comparison to the 2022/2023 school year.
To date Bus Éireann has issued over 133,000 tickets for mainstream school transport services. This represents an increase of over 7% in mainstream tickets issued compared to the start of the 2022/2023 school year.
With regard to transport services for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN), at present Bus Éireann cannot provide the information in the manner requested by the Deputy, to date, close to 5,000 new applications have been received for SEN transport for the 2023/2024 school year, with some 1,400 of these having been received in July alone. This compares to some 3,670 new applications received at this time last year. Transport is being provided for over 3,000 new applicants for the 23/24 school year, with transport being provided overall for over 19,000 pupils in the current school year. As there is no defined closing date for SEN applications, applications continue to be received all year round.
Where a new service is sanctioned, this means a procurement / vetting process is required, while in many instances the school is also sanctioned to employ a transport escort and this necessarily takes time to put in place. By accepting applications year round, the Department can ensure that children with special educational needs receive the transport they require.
To ensure the efficient delivery of services for children on Special Educations Needs school transport, Bus Éireann assesses each application to identify the options available. Where children can be facilitated on an existing service, applications are processed immediately and arrangements put in place with families involved.
Where a new service has to be established there is a lead in period for this process that includes issues such as:
• route design and procurement including contract award.
• in many instances a School Bus Escort is required for the child’s safe transport to school and it can take time for the school to source a suitable person which can impact the start date.
Regrettably, Bus Éireann has reported particular issues where, in a small number of cases transport was sourced and contracts were handed back . Despite best efforts contractors continue to hand back contracts, or there have been zero bids for contracts in certain areas. This is against a backdrop of significant shortages of drivers in the labour market overall and competing demands for drivers to deliver additional public transport initiatives such as Connecting Ireland and Bus Connects/Local Link services.
Bus Éireann is continuing to prioritise sourcing vehicles and drivers, however, they have confirmed a small number of routes remain without a service. This equates to less than 1.5% of pupils. Some services are expected to resume as soon as an escort has been sourced and the Department of Education are working with schools to ensure these resources are put in place as a priority. Again circa 98% of pupils nationwide are being provided with a school transport service. Bus Éireann endeavours to rectify the situation at pace.