Kenny: Annual school transport scramble shows system needs complete overhaul
Kenny: Annual school transport scramble shows system needs complete overhaul - The Labour Party
Labour Education Spokesperson Eoghan Kenny TD has called for an overhaul of the School Transport Scheme, warning that families are once again being left without certainty over how their children will get to school just weeks before the new school year begins.
Deputy Kenny said the annual scramble for school bus places cannot be allowed to become an accepted feature of the return to school and called on Government to invest in sufficient capacity to provide a place for every child who needs one.
Deputy Kenny said:
“Once again, we are approaching the beginning of a new school year and parents across the country are scrambling to secure school bus places for their children.
“Families are contacting us who had places on school transport previously but have now found themselves without a seat for the coming school year. Other parents entering the system for the first time are understandably confused by a process which requires payment before they even know whether their child will ultimately receive a place.
“This uncertainty places enormous pressure on families. Parents need to know how their children are getting to school so that they can plan work, childcare and their everyday lives.
“We cannot continue with a system where families effectively cross their fingers every summer and hope that a seat becomes available.
“Labour has provided an alternative. We have proposed a fully costed additional €37 million investment in school transport, aimed at expanding capacity and working towards a school bus place for every child who needs one.
“That is the level of ambition we should have for school transport.
“School transport is not simply a back-to-school issue. A properly functioning system can reduce the number of cars travelling to school every morning, ease congestion around our schools, support rural communities and make life significantly easier for working families.
“Instead of managing shortages year after year, Government should be planning ahead and providing the capacity required.
“Parents should not have to go through the same scramble every August. We need a fundamental overhaul of the School Transport Scheme, greater capacity and far more certainty for families.
“Government has an opportunity in the upcoming Budget to make that investment. Labour has shown how it can be done. Now we need the political ambition to deliver it.”