Part of 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education – in the Senedd at 1:52 pm on 27 June 2018.
Thank you, Presiding Officer. Cabinet Secretary, I realise that you'll be reluctant to speak about a specific case, so I'm just using this as an illustration. I have a constituent who was told by the local council that her 11-year-old daughter would be expected to get on a school bus, then change onto a connecting public bus. to go to school some 15 to 20 miles away. It's probably not an uncommon story across Wales. A while ago, as well, I took a trip on public transport with a group of young people travelling from their high school back to their home. Although it was a great joy to meet with very sensible and bright young people, it was concerning, because an 11-year-old could have been asked to do that journey on their own. It involved coming into contact with busy roads and complete strangers, and decent and honest though the vast majority of fellow passengers will be on public transport, we do have a duty to safeguard children and young people, and I'm sure you'll agree with me there. So, what checks do you require local authorities and schools to undertake before subcontracting school transport, or deciding that children must travel on public transport to school?