Report of the Director of Education and Head of Access and Sufficiency

This report sets out the proposal to adopt two home to school travel support policies. These proposals would apply to all applicants for pupils starting at reception in primary schools and year 7 at secondary schools in September 2023.   It will also apply to young people entering post 16 or post 19 provision in years 12 and 14.  All children and young people will have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) to be eligible for support.

The Committee is invited to comment on the report prior to its submission to the Executive on 22 July 2022.

The Committee received a report of the Director of Education and the Head of Access and Sufficiency which set out the proposal for two home to school travel support policies, one for children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) who were between the ages of 5 and 16 and one for young people with an EHCP who were between the ages of 16 and 25.  The Committee was invited to comment on the report prior to its submission to the Executive on 22 July 2022.

The main points and themes within the report included:

• Background information;
• Main issues;
• Details of the proposed policies; and
• Wider service improvement.

The Chair highlighted the review of school buses which was currently taking place.  She outlined how she had been made aware that there was not an equitable system in place for the provision of school buses across the Greater Manchester area and had raised this with relevant stakeholders.  She reported that she was working with the Chair of the Environment and Climate Change Scrutiny Committee on how the two Committees could address this issue and that the Committee would receive a report on this at a future meeting.  She informed Members that, although the report  the Committee was considering at today’s meeting related specifically to children with an EHCP, some children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) who were not able to use public transport might be able to travel to school using a school bus if that was available. 

In response to a Member’s question, the Head of Access and Sufficiency confirmed that if a Looked After Child was entitled to Home to School Transport this would automatically continue if they were moved to a new foster care placement.  She confirmed that the policy applied to children in both mainstream and special schools who had an EHCP.  In response to a question from the Chair, she confirmed that the transport provision would continue up to the age of 25, as long as the young person was still accessing education.  The Chair highlighted the increasing focus on promoting independence for young people with SEND, including teaching them how to use public transport independently.  The Executive Member for Early Years, Children and Young People highlighted that funded driving lessons were included in the policy as another way to promote independence.

The Chair highlighted the issues facing homeless families who had been placed outside of the city, further away from their child’s school.  The Director of Education reported that Home to School Transport arrangements for a child with an EHCP would continue if they were placed in accommodation outside of the city.  She advised that, if the child did not have an EHCP, they would be entitled to a free school travel pass but acknowledged that it could be difficult for families who were housed some distance from their child’s school.

In response to a Member’s question, the Head of Access and Sufficiency outlined how parents and young people were being consulted on the development of these policies.

Decision

To endorse the recommendations to the Executive that:

The Executive is recommended to: -

(1)      Consider the recommendations of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Committee.

(2)      Agree in principle the following documents appended to this report, and to authorise the Director of Education to consult on the proposed implementation of them:

a)        Home to School Travel support policy for 5–16-year-olds

b)        Home to School Travel support policy for post 16

c)         Home to School Travel support summary document

(3)      Authorise the Director of Education to consider any responses received to the consultation and to agree to the implementation of the proposed policies appended to this report if she considers it appropriate to do so.

(4)      Consider the work to date on the wider service improvement programme and agree to progress the identified areas of improvement.