The application process for school transport ‘privilege’ seats is now open, but parents face a fare rise of over 50% .
As first reported by Island Echo, parents of children that are not entitled to a seat on council-provided school bus transport can apply for a ‘privilege seat’ until midday on 7th July at an increased cost.
In the past, these spare seats have been offered on a ‘first-come-first-served’ basis, however, from September 2016 the seats will be offered via a randomised ‘lottery’ process. All parents/carers who wish their child(ren) to be entered into the process should apply online via the council’s website www.iwight.com/schooltransport.
If a child is selected, at random, to be offered a privilege seat, the fee for this for the 2016/17 academic year will be £95 per term.
Councillor Shirley Smart, Executive Member for Transport, said:
“The former process was operated on a first-come-first-served basis, which was felt to be unfair. The new process of random selection will offer more fairness to Island parents and carers to obtain a privilege seat, while one is available, to assist them with getting their children to school safely; alongside the council’s statutory duty to provide such a service to entitled children.”
Local Authorities have a statutory duty to provide appropriate school transport for ‘entitled’ children. It is the responsibility of parent/carers to ensure the safe passage of children to and from school.
The Isle of Wight Council has, for a number of years, operated a ‘spare seat’ opportunity for ‘unentitled’ children to obtain a place on a school bus, where spare seats exist. This is not a statutory service that the council must provide; it is a sensible approach to filling the unused spaces on buses that are not running at full capacity.
