Consultation on the provision of transport to faith school

1. Background

The Isle of Wight Council currently provides free transport to 300 faith school pupils (2009/2010) at a cost of £289,040 a year.

By law, the following pupils qualify for free transport to school:

Children in reception class and years 1-3 who attend their nearest suitable school (catchment area school), and which is more than two miles from their home.
Children in years 4 and above who are of compulsory school age who attend their nearest suitable school (catchment area school), and which is more than three miles from their home.
Children in years 4, 5 and 6 who are eligible for free school meals or whose parents receive the maximum amount of Working Tax Credit, and who attend a school which is their nearest suitable school (catchment area school) which is more than two miles from their home.
Children who are 11-16 and are eligible for free school meals or whose parents receive the maximum amount of Working Tax Credit, and who attend a school which is one of the three nearest qualifying schools (between two and six miles from their home).

As well as providing transport to these categories of pupils, the council also currently provides assistance on a discretionary basis to pupils who do not attend their nearest school, but who attend their nearest faith (church) school on religious grounds.

2. What change is being considered?

The council is considering changing its Home to School Transport Policy, so that from September 2012 transport to faith schools will no longer be offered, other than those who remain eligible by law.

3. Why is the change being considered?

With the cost of transport increasing, the council is not able to sustain the current level of transport support that it offers to pupils. In the current economic climate, the council needs to identify significant savings and so is reviewing its areas of discretionary spending. In doing so, the council is committed to ensuring its services and its use of resources are fair and equitable to all its residents - including fair access to education.

Generally, when families choose a school for their child, which is over the statutory transport distance and not their closest school, they have to pay for their own transport costs. However, pupils who attend a faith school on religious grounds currently qualify for free transport if it is their nearest faith school. In practice, this discretionary support is not available to pupils attending non-faith schools. Currently the council is providing free faith transport to two faith schools. The withdrawal of free transport to faith schools will mean that all pupils would be treated equally, regardless of their religion or belief. This would arguably be a fairer and more equitable policy, and it would release significant savings in transport.

The council encourages parents, pupils, staff and members of the public to engage in this consultation and make their views known.

4. What are the options on how and when the changes will be brought into effect?

The council is proposing three options for faith transport as part of this consultation:

For all subsidised faith school transport to cease from September 2012.
For all subsidised faith school transport to cease from September 2012 for new entrants, but to continue for existing recipients until they reach the end of compulsory education.
For all subsidised faith school transport to cease from September 2012 for new entrants, but to continue for existing recipients until they reach the end of their current key stage.

5. What will the changes mean to families and children attending faith schools?

From September 2012 children who are 11-16 and are eligible for free school meals or their parents receive the maximum amount of Working Tax Credit will continue to be eligible for free school transport if the school is between 2 – 15 miles from their home.

If these circumstances do not apply then from September 2012 children attending faith schools will no longer be eligible for free school transport. The timing of the removal of the discretionary support will depend on the results of this consultation and which option (from the 3 above) is taken. Either:

All subsided faith school transport will cease from September 2012

Subsidised faith school transport for new entrants will stop from September 2012, but continue for existing recipients until they reach the end of compulsory education

Subsidised faith school transport will stop from September 2012 for new entrants, but continue for existing recipients until they reach the end of their current key stage.

When the subsidised transport is removed families of children attending faith schools who do not qualify for free school transport will be responsible for getting their child/ren to school meeting the full cost. Should public transport be used the cheapest option at the present time (May 2011) is to purchase the 90 day freedom pass. This currently costs £99 for 90 consecutive days including weekends, school holidays, peak and off peak times. Purchasing 4 passes to cover the school year would equate to a little over £1 per day. It must be stressed that this information is accurate for May 2011 and prices or the options for bus passes may be subject to change.

6. Do other councils provide free faith transport

In recent years a number of councils have reviewed their policies on faith transport. Some, such as East Sussex and Essex have decided to introduce a charge for transport provision while others such as Bracknell Forest and Hertfordshire have decided to withdraw the provision of transport to faith schools. Some other councils are currently proposing to change their arrangements for 2012.

Nationally some faith schools provide transport for their own pupils sometimes with families contributing part or all of the costs.

7. Why is the Isle of Wight Council not proposing to introduce a charge for faith transport?

Any proposal other than a complete withdrawal of faith transport would mean that some pupils would still be treated more favourably than others, i.e. if a charge was introduced for faith transport, any pupils attending a faith school would receive a subsidy on their transport costs while pupils attending non-faith schools would not.

8. Would parents still be able to apply for a place in a faith school?

Yes. Any change to the Home to School Transport Policy would not remove a parent’s right to name a preference for a school that they want their child to go to. However, parents need to consider how their child will travel to the school should they be offered a place.

9. Can parents move their child to their nearest (catchment) school?

Yes, as these changes, if implemented, will coincide with the start of a new school year you can complete an admissions form to apply for a place at another school of your choice. This will be considered if the round of applications for that school and the places available.

10. Who is being consulted on this proposal?

The council is consulting with head teachers, pupils, representatives from the diocese, representatives of parents and school governors, early years providers and councillors.

11. How can I respond to the consultation?

Respondents should complete the online response form which is available at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/faith_travel or send a paper copy of the response form to:

Faith School Transport Consultation
County Hall
Newport
Isle of Wight.
PO30 1UD

12. What is the timetable for the consultation?

The closing date for responses is Monday 18 July 2011. An analysis of the responses will then be prepared and this will be considered by the council’s cabinet for a decision in August 2011. The Home to School Transport Policy for 2011/2012 will then be published and if the proposal is agreed, this will ensure that parents seeking places at faith schools from September 2012 will be aware of the change before indicating their school preferences.

13. How can people make their views known?

Paper copies of the survey are available from help centres, libraries and County Hall, High Street, Newport, PO301UD.

Public events are being held for further information and discussion about the proposed changes on the following dates both from 6.15 to 7.30 pm;
23 June at Christ the King College, sports hall
28 June at St. Francis Primary School, large hall, upper site.

FAQs are also available by clicking on the following link, please click here

The Equality Impact Assessment for this can be viewed here