School Transport - update

Tonight I joined a large group of dedicated parents and Town Councillors (and current County Councillor, Cllr Brown) at a meeting at Ferrydown House. We met to discuss how to take forward the stage 2 appeal against the County Council's decision to withdraw free school transport for 80 North Petherton children who attend the Robert Blake Science College in Bridgwater.

The County Council is attempting to force the children to walk almost 3 miles along roads that are patently not safe (there isn't even a proper "green man" crossing at the M5 Junction 24 roundabout)). The bland, generic refusal of the stage 1 appeal shows just how heartless the application of this policy is.

The Council has the discretion to provide free transport, although it appears to have overlooked that. Rightly the parents are not sitting still and accepting this. Town Councillors are standing with them, offering whatever support they can. The safety of our children should be the paramount consideration. The County Council has an overriding duty of care and all policies should be tested against inadvertent discrimination on grounds of gender. The reality of the present situation is that it will be women who will be disproportionately affected. It is they who will need to adjust working contracts to facilitate a two hour round trip to accompany their child along the route (deemed safe only when accompanies by an adult). The alternative is a £675 transport charge per child (equivalent to about 75 pence per mile or 93.75 hours/ more than two full weeks work at minimum wage rates) or taking the children by car adding up to 70 cars to the morning rush.

The County Council's position appears to be that it is perfectly reasonable to require an 11 year old child to leave home no later than 7.25 am, walk almost 3 miles to school carrying heavy bags of books, PE kit, DT equipment and a lunch, arrive at 8.45, either wet, cold or too hot, to a school with too few lockers. Our children should arrive at school ready to learn, not exhausted and uncomfortable. The estimated walk time was calculated by an adult, unburdened with the paraphernalia of modern schooling. Any parent will tell you that pushing a pushchair or having younger children slows the rate of progress considerably.

For those of you who follow me on Facebook, you will know that I have written to the County Councillor responsible for school transport - Cllr Frances Nicholson. I received a reply not from her but from Cllr Brown. I still await a formal response from Cllr Nicholson. I have also written to Justine Greening the Secretary of State for education. Having received a standard generic reply I wrote again asking for a review of the school transport regulations. A review that would take into account the way society operates in the twenty first century.

The group has set its strategy for fighting this unfair decision. I will continue to support them in every way I can. Whether you live in North Petherton or not, if you want to support this campaign do get in touch.

Councillors will be meeting Cllr Nicholson on 1 March 2017 - let us hope that common sense prevails and the Council will decide to exercise its discretion in the particular circumstances that pertain in North Petherton.