§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what guidance he has recently issued to Scottish local authorities regarding their duties to provide school transport for pupils under the Education Acts; and what plans he has to review that guidance. [17205]
§ Mr. Wilson[holding answer 1 December 1997]: Guidance on the statutory duties and powers of local authorities on the provision of school transport was contained in The Scottish Office Education Department Circular No. 5/95, issued on 24 May 1995; The Scottish Office Development Department Circular No. 17/1996, issued on 30 April 1996 and The Scottish Office Education and Industry Department Circular No. 8/96, issued on 19 September 1996. My right hon. Friend has no plans to review that guidance.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list those Scottish local authorities which currently provide a level of school transportation beyond that required in the Education Acts. [17207]
§ Mr. Wilson[holding answer 1 December 1997]: Education authorities have a statutory duty under section 158W 51 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 to provide school transport as they consider necessary. This gives them wide discretion to take account of individual circumstances in each case. The Table below indicates the criteria used by each education authority in school session 1996–97 in determining provision of free transport or transport facilities. Information for 1997–98 school session is not yet available. In addition, all authorities provided free transport for children with special educational needs, and almost all authorities took account of medical and personal circumstances or hazardous road conditions to provide transport in individual cases.
Education authority Distance criteria applied Aberdeen City 2 miles (Primary) 3 miles (Secondary) Aberdeenshire 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) Angus 2 miles (Primary) 3 miles (Secondary) Argyll and Bute Statutory walking distance Clackmannanshire 1 mile (under 8) 2 miles (8 and over) Dumfries and Galloway Statutory walking distance Dundee City Statutory walking distance East Ayrshire Statutory walking distance East Dunbartonshire 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) East Lothian 2 miles all pupils East Renfrewshire 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) Edinburgh City Statutory walking distance Falkirk 1 mile (under 8) 2 miles (8 and over) Fife 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) Glasgow City 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) Highland Statutory walking distance Inverclyde Statutory walking distance Midlothian Statutory walking distance Moray 2 miles all pupils North Ayrshire Statutory walking distance North Lanarkshire 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) Orkney Islands 1 mile all pupils in Winter and Easter terms Perth and Kinross Statutory walking distance Renfrewshire Less than the statutory walking distance (but not specified) Scottish Borders 2 miles (Primary) 3 miles (Secondary) Shetland Islands 1½ miles in Winter months South Ayrshire 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) South Lanarkshire 1 mile (Primary) 2 miles (Secondary) Stirling 1 mile (under 8) 2 miles (8 and over) West Dunbartonshire Less than the statutory walking distance (but not specified) West Lothian 2 miles (Primary) 3 miles (Secondary) Western Isles 1 mile all pupils The statutory walking distance is defined under section 42(4) of The Education (Scotland) Act 1980 as being two miles for pupils under eight years of age and three miles for all other pupils. The statutory walking distance is defined for the purposes of reasonable excuse, i.e., it is considered a reasonable excuse for parents not to send their children to their designated school if no arrangements are made for them under section 51 of the 1980 Act. Section 51 does not itself set any distance beyond which transport should be provided.