Agenda item

The Cabinet considered an urgent report of the Director of Environment and Transport concerning revised proposals to undertake a further round of consultation on the mainstream Home to School Transport Policy. A copy of the urgent report, marked ‘2’, is filed with these minutes.

The Cabinet noted comments which had been received from Mr. S. J. Galton CC and Dr. S. Hill CC, a copy of which, marked ‘2A’, is filed with these minutes.

Mr. Osborne then made a statement to the Cabinet, a copy of which is filed with these minutes. He recognised, in light of concerns raised during consultation and prior to the Scrutiny Commission meeting of 26 March 2014, why he had been asked to consider the policy moving to nearest ‘Leicestershire catchment school’ rather than nearest Leicestershire school’. However he believed there were a number of implications as to why it would not be appropriate for the Cabinet to consult on such a proposal, including greater risk of challenge from parents and schools and that the admission catchment areas of academies was something the Council had no control over. A policy based on this would therefore not be ‘future proofed.’

He therefore proposed that the Cabinet should consult on a policy which provided as follows:

• Transport to the nearest qualifying school with places available providing education appropriate to the age ability and aptitude of the child. For these purposes a school would not be deemed to be appropriate if it did not offer a transfer entry point that was compatible with the current school attended by the pupil; and/or

• Transport to the nearest qualifying Leicestershire school with available places;

but that for schools where there had been  no change in  the catchment area or age range that transport would continue to be provided to the nearest available catchment school in line with the policy adopted by the County Council in September 2012 i.e. using the frozen catchment areas as at 31st May 2012.

The Chairman thanked Mr. Osborne for the work he had undertaken in bringing this urgent matter to the Cabinet.

RESOLVED:

a)    That approval be given to a further round of consultation on a revised home to school transport proposal as follows:

• Transport to the nearest qualifying school with places available providing education appropriate to the age ability and aptitude of the child. For these purposes a school will not be deemed to be appropriate if it does not offer a transfer entry point that is compatible with the current school attended by the pupil; and/or

• Transport to the nearest qualifying Leicestershire school with available places;

but that for schools where there has been  no change in  the catchment area or age range that transport continue to be provided to the nearest available catchment school in line with the policy adopted by the County Council in September 2012 i.e. using the frozen catchment areas as at 31^st May 2012;

b)    That it be noted that consultation is likely to commence on this and complementary post-16 transport arrangements immediately after the Easter school break on Monday 28^th April and run through to Sunday 15^th June 2014, and that the results of this consultation and a revised Mainstream Home to School Transport Policy will be reported to the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 15^th July 2014.

(KEY DECISION)

REASONS FOR DECISION:

1.    A consultation exercise on the earlier policy proposals closed on 12^th March 2014. Just over 2,000 responses to the consultation were received along with a number of alternative policy suggestions;

2.    It was clear from the consultation responses that there were concerns about appropriate transport being provided at age range transfers and that Leicestershire residents wanted the ability to express a preference for their traditional catchment school instead of the nearest school which could be in a neighbouring local authority.