Children left stranded by school transport mix-up

Children left stranded by school transport mix-up

13 September 2017

DOZENS of local school children endured a stressful return to school following a mix-up in school transport.

The Education Authority has pledged to increase capacity on some routes after children were abandoned by their bus service.

Parents of students from Comber and Darragh Cross were among those told, during their first school days last week, that there was no room on the bus they expected to take to school.

A miscalculation by education officials meant children, many of whom were starting secondary school for the first time, were not allocated a place on a bus, despite having the appropriate bus pass and being told they qualified for the transport service.

Children across the Strangford constituency area were affected by the issue, which Portaferry councillor Joe Boyle said had been “upsetting” some children.

Mr Boyle said he had been contacted by many parents who were very concerned that their children would be left at the roadside because of the fear of overcrowding on buses.

“Parents fear their children will be left behind, particularly working parents who have gone to work and feel helpless whenever contacted to be told their child cannot get on their bus,” he said.

“No child should be left behind at school transport pick up points nor should they have to decide who boards the bus because there are more students than seats available. 

“The difficulty appears to be an underestimating of the number of pupils requiring transport.

“The Education Authority may not have been aware of numbers of returning sixth form students until examination results were received.

“I believe these concerns are being addressed as a matter of urgency by the Education Authority.”

An Education Authority spokesman said approximately 90,000 pupils were entitled to home to school transport each day and said the service is managed by the authority and delivered through a combination of Translink services, private contracts and use of the Education Authority’s fleet of around 800 buses. 

“At the beginning of each school year, it can take some time for transport arrangements to settle,” he said.

“Adjustments are sometimes required to specific routes in the first few weeks of term to ensure that there is sufficient capacity for all pupils who require transport.”

He said additional transport arrangement would this week be put in place specifically for children from the Strangford area attending Our Lady’s and St Patrick’s College, Knock, and Strangford College.