Issue - meetings

Report by the Corporate Director for Children’s Services and the Corporate Director for Environment and Place

In February 2022 the authority set up a Home to School Transport Working Group to review OCC’s School Transport policies and to make recommendations to People’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee. The Committee received that report on 30 March 2023 and they in turn provided a report for Cabinet’s consideration on 18 April 2023. This report considers in detail each recommendation

RECOMMENDATION

The Cabinet is recommended to approve the approaches presented in paragraph 7 of the report.

Recommendations approved.

Cabinet had before it a report and recommendations from the Home to School Transport Working Group which had been established to consider:-

(a)            the Home to School Transport Policy and the options for any changes to the policy;

(b)            the impact on carbon emissions of any change in policy;

(c)             the equalities implications of any changes

The provision of Home to School Transport for eligible children was a statutory duty for local authorities. The Council determines and reviews its policy that applies to providing home to school transport for children of compulsory school age and also its Post 16 transport policy statement that applies to young people of sixth form age.

Jo Evans addressed the Cabinet regarding concerns on the future proposals for the “Spare Seats” scheme.  Ms Evans considered that the proposals were not sustainable in the long term and referred to examples where the alternative provision proposed by certain schools were inadequate and unaffordable for the families affected.

Annalisa Miller also addressed the Cabinet on the proposals in the report.  Ms Miller expressed concerns that the report did not provide details of specific costs of the “spare seats” scheme and savings that would be achieved by the changes to the policy.

The Executive Director (People) responded to the comments made by the members of the public.  He explained that the reforms to the policies concerning school transport would take time to progress and would take into account the needs of specific families. He gave an assurance that there would be ongoing discussions to find suitable solutions in individual cases.

The Chair thanked Cllr Graham and members of the Working Group for their report and recommendations.  She referred to the need for ongoing work to review these recommendations and the Council’s future policies on school transport taking into the issues affecting specific schools. 

Councillor Brighouse, Cabinet Member for Children, Education and Young People’s Services, also responded to concerns expressed by residents and said that she recognised that communications on the changes to the “Spare seats” scheme had caused concern for number of families. She reiterated that the Council was working hard to identify solutions affecting those families, particularly in two specific schools where alternative transport provision was being considered.

Councillor Andy Graham, Chair of the Working Group, addressed the Cabinet and referred to the immediate short-term issues that had been identified in this review, particularly concerning certain schools.  He suggested that the Cabinet would need to consider the wider longer-term issues in discission with local transport providers.

Councillor Brighouse moved and Councillor Gant seconded the recommendations in the report,  and they were approved.

RESOLVED to approve the recommendations of the Home to School Transport Working Group set out in paragraph 7 of the report.