§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for Education when the current three-mile rule for free transport for children to schools was introduced; what plans he has to revise it; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ForthThe present definition of "walking distance" —two miles for pupils aged five to seven, three miles for eight to sixteen-year-olds, measured by the nearest available route—was introduced in the 1944 Act. Section 39 deals with the grounds on which a parent is not guilty of an offence if his child fails to attend school regularly. It, along with other factors, is taken into account by local education authorities in considering, under section 55 of the 1944 Act, when free transport is necessary.
The Government have no plans to revise the present provisions.