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Council cannot rule out school transport cuts

Thursday, 26 September 2024 11:36

By Ted Peskett - Local Democracy Reporter X @TedPeskettNews

Cuts to school transport seen elsewhere in Wales is a risk in the Vale of Glamorgan as well, a council official has said.

Vale Council’s head of strategy, community learning and resources, Trevor Baker, was asked at a scrutiny committee meeting last Thursday whether the local authority would have to make reductions to school transport similar to those seen in Bridgend.

The removal of free school transport for certain groups and the withdrawal of transport for pupils who the council thinks should be able to walk to school were among the changes approved by Bridgend Council’s cabinet in July.

Cllr Rhys Thomas, Conservative member for Plymouth ward, asked the question at the local authority’s learning and culture scrutiny committee meeting, adding that the news in Bridgend was concerning for parents there.

Mr Baker said: “I don’t know too many of the details around what is happening in Bridgend."

“The challenge that we have here… we have fewer drivers that are available, the cost of those contracts are going way up and those operators, the way that they work is, they don’t just serve our schools."

“They cross borders and they go all over the place."

“What we are looking at doing [is], what can be changed in terms of pick up and drop off times? is that going to make a difference going forward because it gives us a greater economy to scale with some of these service providers?"

“Beyond that, there isn’t too much that we can do because there just aren’t enough drivers and operators at the moment, so it is a risk, yes.”

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) reported in August that some councillors in Bridgend feared the changes to school transport there could lead to lower attendance rates in school and increased traffic and congestion around schools with more parents choosing to take their children by car.

The move is designed to save £792,000 and it will take effect in September 2025.

Under it, the sibling rule in Bridgend which gives pupils free transport on the same terms as older siblings will come to an end.

Free transport for post-16 English-medium pupils will be removed and transport for pupils with a walking route to school identified as safe by the council will be withdrawn.

There will be an offer of a personal transport budget to parents and carers of pupils with additional learning needs.

Councils across England and Wales continue to face challenges financially with costs and demands on services increasing.

Vale Council is expecting to face a budget gap of about £9 million for 2025/26. This year, it had to bridge a gap of more than £7 million.

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