New transport cuts brought in by the Conservatives, have brought anxiety and threatens financial hardship for our residents. The Green Party are trying to put politics aside and work with opposition parties to make it right.
They are calling for the new Home to School Transport Policy to be revisited and appropriate changes made that take into account the concerns of the 1,299 consultation responses that North Yorkshire received.
- The cuts were voted in nearly entirely by Conservatives and Labour on 24 July last year (see minutes for voting record).
- The Council policy document is 33 pages long and complicated. In many cases eligibility will be assessed on a case-by-case basis, which also raises questions about whether the new policy is fair and equitable with so much left to interpretation.
The new school transport cuts restrict who can have free transport to school, by only funding transport to the nearest school by distance rather than catchment. The admissions system still operates on catchment, so people might choose a catchment school and then realise they won’t get free transport. This is leading to young people being separated from their siblings and peers, and giving no choice of school for those who can’t afford it.
It also limits the options of social mobility – if a person’s closest school is not performing well, then they will have no option other than to attend it. This prevents them from improving their educational and life outcomes.
In a time of rising mental health issues in young people, the uncertainty adds to stress around the pinch point of transition from primary to secondary- they won’t know where they are going or whether they will know anyone. In some cases, there are no established links between primary schools and their closest secondary by distance. Nearest schools that fall in a different county may also have different holidays.
The cuts were put forward on grounds of cost cutting, but Campaign group School Transport Action Group (STAG) are to be commended for raising questions about the exact cost savings of the cuts – initial Council figures started at £4.2m and were last cited at £1.7m. Most recently, as the complicated arrangements become clearer, the Executive has refused to put a figure on savings.
Cllr Andy Brown (Green):
North Yorkshire’s policy of only paying for a child to travel to the nearest school needs applying with flexibility, common sense and realism. It is being applied crudely and bureaucratically, with little thought for the serious impact on individual families, local communities and local schools.
Cllr Arnold Warneken (Green):
This decision just shows how out of touch and unfeeling our leadership is. It makes people choose between financial hardship or the best interests of their children.
The evidence is clear that transport poverty hits hardest in rural areas. And for what? The savings are not clear cut.That is why we Greens are putting political differences aside and trying to work together with other parties to challenge and reverse this policy. We believe it was not properly thought through, nor the implications understood at the time of the Council vote. I hope that the Leadership will have the grace and compassion to revisit the decision.
I would also encourage residents to reach out to School Transport Action Group (STAG).
From the NYC Home to School Transport Policy Document:
The distance is not the shortest distance by road and the route may include footpaths, public rights of way, bridleways, and other pathways as identified on the GIS. This means that in some cases all pupils living in the same street or even in adjoining properties may not be eligible for free home to school transport.
